The Darkness Within
by thebestkindofcharity
Summary: Lanae Iverson is new to Hogwarts. After losing her mother on her 16th birthday she just wants to move on. Her father is making that impossible. As is the unknown power that is growing unsteadily stronger every day. Set after 5th book.
1. Introductions

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything or anyone in the Harry Potter world. JK Rowling owns it all, and she is amazing. End of Disclaimer. **

You leaned your head against the window and sigh. How had you gotten yourself in this situation? Oh yeah, your mom was killed on your 16th birthday nine months ago leaving you to deal with foster home after foster home. This was the best offer to come your way since then. The warning whistle went off, startling you. You groan, this time slamming your forehead a little harder into the window. You had the sudden urge to break the window, jump out of it, and run far away from the train station as fast as you could. Of course being American would not help you at all now that you were located in London, England. You were lucky you knew what Big Ben was. So here you were stuck on a train bound for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You close your eyes and begin thinking about the lessons your mom had taught you while you were growing up. She kept your powers a secret while letting you go to normal muggle school. Muggle by day Witch by night she used to say. It had made you smile.

You didn't flinch when you heard the compartment door open. You just sat there, and listened.

"Who is she?" a guys voice asks as he enters the compartment.

"Ron, be quiet. You'll wake her. And besides we can just ask her when she is not asleep." Both of them sit across from you while someone else sits beside you. You feel a hand slide past you reaching down past your feet.

"Please don't touch my stuff." You say sitting up.

The boy who had leaned over sat up straight not taking his wide green eyes off of you. Your eyes notice the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead. You try to take him all in… his messy black hair, his cute round glasses, his totally handsome face. And then you realized you were staring.

"Oh, sorry. Well I am Harry Po…" he started but you interrupted him.

"I know who you are, but what about you two?" you turned to the red headed boy and brunette girl watching you curiously.

"This is Ron and Hermione." He says pointing at each of them in turn. Well glad he pointed out the boy as Ron and the girl as Hermione you might have gotten them mixed up. You wanted to hit yourself. You needed to stop being so cynical. This was a new place with new people… and the boy who lived of course. The really cute boy who lived. They each said Hi.

"I am Lanae Iverson by the way."

"Are you new? I mean I have never seen you before and you definitely don't sound like you're from here, so I was just wondering." Ron ends up tapering off as Hermione nudges him.

"Yeah, I am." As soon as you admit this Ron and Hermione seem to get into a huge discussion about anything and everything Hogwarts. Half listening your gaze turns back to Harry. He wasn't paying attention at all. He was staring past you all, out the window, looking very sad.

All of a sudden the compartment door is opened again. A boy with super blonde hair and incredibly blue eyes is standing there, with a rather sour expression on his otherwise rather cute face. He glares at Harry, Hermione, and Ron.

"So you're all still here? Damn. I would have thought at least one of you would have been killed by now." Ron and Harry stand up in unison and shout, "Go away Malfoy!"

"I would really like to see you try." The boy named Malfoy says with a wicked grin on his face. That's when you notice the two hulk like boys standing behind him. Well, at least the drama here seems interesting. Some popcorn and a soda would be nice though, you thought jokingly. While they seem to be having a glaring match the name Malfoy slowly starts to ring some bells. Where had you heard that name before?? Your eyes open wide at the sudden epiphany. You stand up. All eyes were on you as you walked over to Malfoy, including his. He eyes you up and down before saying anything.

"And who might you be?" Ignoring his question you ask, "Malfoy? That name sounds so familiar. Is it pretty common?"

"Actually it isn't. It is from a long ancestral line of pure-bloods." He answers shooting Hermione a nasty look, "Actually my father is Lucius Malfoy. Ever heard of him?" You don't take your eyes off of his.

"Yes, yes I have." You say inching towards him. "In fact I met your father not too long ago." You continue to edge closer until there is about four inches between you.

"You did?" Malfoy asks suddenly sounding unsure. You raise your hand up and slowly caress his cheek. You feel him shudder under your touch. "Yes. And I just think I should be honest with you." You say leaning in even closer, your lips nearly touching. He tries not to gulp.

"Honest about what?" In a whisper so low only Malfoy could hear you, you say menacingly, "I will make your father pay for what he did." And with that you push him, hard. No one noticed your eyes changing to a tint of red. And no one thought the push would get Malfoy anywhere, but a second later he and his two goons were thrown into the opposite compartment knocking the door and all its occupants. You slam the door and sit back down in your seat. Three pairs of eyes were staring at you, shocked. You turn and stare out the window, not in the mood for giving explanations.

"That was bloody brilliant." Ron says enthusiastically. Hermione nods in agreement. Harry continues to stare at you, curiously. Feeling the awkward tension you stand up quickly and grab your bag.

"I am off to change. Be back in a bit." And with that you opened the door, stepped over the unconscious Malfoy boy, and walked down the hallway.


	2. Explanation

Way to make a good impression you told yourself. If I lose it again I don't know what will happen, you think shuddering.

"Lanae!" You hear behind you.

Stopping you turn around. Harry was in hot pursuit. Either run away down the long narrow hallway or wait for him to catch up. You chose the former as you watch him approach. Semi-out of breath he asks, "Why did you do that back there?? I mean don't get me wrong, I found it incredibly entertaining, but there has to be a reason. You don't seem like the kind of girl to cause drama."

You raise an eyebrow at him. He had no idea what kind of girl you were. His eyes continue to look into yours. You slowly start to feel calm. Without thinking you pull him into the compartment next to you. The emptiness welcomed you both.

"You want to know why I reacted that way with Malfoy?" He nods. Before you could think better of it, the story of the last day with your mother unfolded.

*** The door opened mechanically as she entered the house. My mom was dressed in a casual suit her hair thrown loosely into a bun. I ran over to her and hugged her tightly.

"I can't apologize enough for having to take that interview today, on your sixteenth birthday!!! But I got it!!" she shouts happily.

I couldn't help be happy. Sure she had been gone most of the day, but she was here now. And she had gotten the job of a lifetime! Her smile was contagious. My long dark brown hair blew in the breeze of the open door. I shut it quickly.

"Come on, let's get this party started!" She says pulling out her wand and causing streamers and banners to fly up and around our house.

After a couple of hours, and lots of birthday cake, we settled down into the couch. The doorbell startles both of us, causing us to laugh in unison. She stands up and rushes over to answer it. In the doorway stood a taller man with long blonde hair, wearing a wizards robe. My mother tensed up. I could feel her silent warning of danger.

"Hello Nikole Iverson."

"Why Lucius Malfoy, what a pleasant surprise." She says overly cheerful in that fake tone she usually only reserved for telemarketers.

"Not really." He then leans closer to my mother and whispers in her ear, all while looking straight at me.

"Lanae." My mom says in a very calm voice. She looks at me, her face showing more fear then I had seen in a very long time. "Remember what we talked about? When I said there may come a time for you to leave?" I simply nodded my head, not really able to understand what was really happening. "Go pack your things love. Don't worry. I love you, my daughter."

I walked up the stairs, a sense of dread like no other washing over me. The man had no idea what my mother had really just told me to do. I was to get out of the house. Now. But my mom was supposed to come with me. We had never discussed a scenario where I would be leaving without her. I grabbed my hidden backpack, and debated what to do.

Grab the floo powder and throw it into the fireplace, or go down and get my mom. I had to go. I knew she wanted me to get out of there, but I couldn't leave her. With the floo powder in my hand I tried to make a rational decision. A second later the door came bursting open.

"Get out of here Lanae! Go!" my mother screamed right before a jet of green light hit her straight in the back. Her eyes went blank as she fell to the floor. The man with the blonde hair stared angrily at her dead body. Without thinking I threw in the powder and shouted, "Mother's Gazebo." Tears flowing freely down my face***

You finish the story looking down at the ground for fear that tears would once again start falling.

"Well that explains it then." He says solemnly. You didn't know what to say next, so you awkwardly begin to ramble.

"I mean I know it isn't as bad as losing both your parents before you're barely old to walk, but it still hurts. That and I haven't even met my father. Not that I would ever want to." You add the last part under your breath.

"I am so sorry. You didn't have to tell me all this you know."

"I know, but I just had this feeling, like I could trust you. Though I am so sure you do not need any more on your plate." You say causing him to grin sheepishly. An awkward silence creeps up between you two.

"Well, I will see you later." You say standing up suddenly and heading back towards the restrooms to change.

After changing you arrive to Hogwarts a lot more quickly then you thought. Exiting the train, you had no idea where Harry, Ron or Hermione might have gone. You decide to follow a large group of students to carriages pulled by thestrals. You climb into an empty one and wait to be taken down to the school. The door suddenly opens again and three people enter. You slouch down trying not to be noticed. It was Malfoy and his two goons. Great, I could not have better luck. You think hoping he'll just not recognize you. But alas he notices you almost immediately.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" he shouts pulling out his wand and pointing it directly at you. "I am Lanae Iverson. And you are?"

"Draco Malfoy. He is the boy you knocked out on the train." One of his stooges says dumbly. You almost laughed at the look of annoyance on Draco's face.

"She knows who I am you twat." He says coldly, now pressing his wand against your chest. You could feel the tingle in your eyes, as the red tint would soon give way to a glow.

"Listen closely Draco Malfoy. You may try to do whatever you like to me. But please remember what happened on the train, and that was without a wand. So if I were you, I would calm down, and take your F'ing wand off of me. I am not here to humiliate you."

He glares at you.

"You do not intimidate me Lanae. You caught me off guard last time. I learn from my mistakes." He says as he brings his wand tip up to your chin. You just look up at knowing he called your bluff, he could throw a spell at you faster then you could even touch your wand.

"And as for your distracting efforts." He says lifting up his own hand to caress your cheek, sending and odd shiver down your spine, "It will not work again." The carriage stops. You had not even noticed that it had begun moving. The three of them get off, Malfoy last.

He turns around and says, coldly, "Nice to meet you Lanae. I would watch your back if I were you." He looks up and down your body once more before smiling an evil smirk, and then leaves. You have no idea what you just got yourself into.


	3. Potions

Upon entering the castle an older lady comes up to you.

"You must be Lanae Iverson." You nod. "Follow me then." She says leading you to a stone gargoyle. It moves and you follow her up a staircase that opens into an office. "Wait here, the Headmaster will be with you shortly." And with that she leaves you alone in the office.

You couldn't help but notice all the different things cluttered about. A movement of red caught your attention. A beautiful bird sat on a gold perch to the left of the desk. You wanted to move closer to it.

"You must be Lanae!" you hear behind you. You quickly turn around to see an older man with half moon spectacles smiling down at you.

"Yes sir." You reply.

"Professor Albus Dumbledore." He says with a bow.

He begins to go into some of the rules and outlines the school has, and what his job is and where the classrooms are. You nod randomly, still looking about his office.

"And you must, under no circumstance, tell people who murdered your mother. It would cause increasing tension, and would not help in the least." He says suddenly very serious.

"Yes. Of course Professor." You say, reminding yourself to make sure Harry doesn't utter a word about your story to anyone. Without warning a very large hat is placed upon your head.

"What is going on?" you ask aloud.

"I am sorting you of course." The answer seemed to come from inside your own head.

"Let us see. A very strong foundation in Slytherin. That would be the best fit." The terror and hate that filled you suddenly was beyond your control. "Alright, so you definitely do not want to be put there, better be the other strong pull. Gryffindor!"

You knew it had shouted the last word out loud. You breathed a sigh of relief. Dumbledore takes the hat off your head and adds sweetly, "You may now go to the Great Hall and join your fellow classmates." You nodded and smiled turning to go.

"Oh and Lanae, do try to keep your outbursts with Draco Malfoy minimal. He is not his father. As you should well know." A deep shade of red crept over your cheeks. "Now go enjoy the feast! And get a good night's rest." He adds, officially dismissing you.

You find your way to the great hall. No one notices you enter. You see Harry, Hermione, and Ron sitting together towards the middle and hoped they would have room for one more. You tap Harry on the shoulder, causing him to look up at you.

"Does this mean you're in Gryffindor?" he asks excitedly. You smile big and nod. He scoots over so you can sit next to him. And then the introductions began. After eating an overly large amount of food, you follow the rest of the Gryffindor's to the common room. Walking down a flight of stairs, listening to two girls talk happily someone bumps into you.

You stop and look to see Draco smirking down at you. You don't say anything as you glare at him, which just causes him to smirk more. Ignoring the urge to throw him over the stair banister you turn and head back down the stairs, knowing his eyes followed you every step of the way.

The next morning came extremely quickly. You got ready for the day and scanned your schedule. Potions first. You had heard last night that Snape pretty much sucked. You couldn't imagine him getting upset at you the first day. If you just paid attention and didn't say anything how could anything bad happen? You followed some people down to the dungeons, where the class is held. You enter and find a seat at the front of the classroom, by yourself. What kind of teacher would pick on the student who sits in the front?? Someone pulls out the chair besides you and sits down. You found yourself looking into Draco's blue eyes.

"Oh great. It's you." You say before you could stop yourself.

He gives you a look but doesn't say anything. Wow, this guy was really pushing it. You weren't going to be able to keep your temper under control if he keeps popping up randomly. I mean how is a girl supposed to stay calm, you think glancing behind you. Harry was sitting a few tables back, eyeing you oddly. Well I would give me a weird look too after the story I told him yesterday, you think mentally kicking yourself. Who knows what he is thinking. You mouth to him that you'll explain later. Then you remember that he wasn't supposed to know the story at all.

"Oh Sh.." you begin to say but are drowned out by the slamming of a door. Draco was smiling at you, knowing exactly what you had said. You just face front and watch Snape stride across the front of the classroom. His ominous glare silences everyone.

"As you are all in Advanced Potion Making, we will be making advanced potions. If you fall behind, do not expect me to have pity. Your grade will reflect your skill level. Today we will be starting with Love Potions." Snape says dully.

Some of the girls giggle. You roll your eyes and begin to drift off. You try to pay attention, but your attention continues to drift back toward where Harry was sitting. Draco nudged you with his elbow a couple of times. You chose to ignore him, but he managed to get you to stay sitting forward. A little too late though because a second later Snape tells everyone to begin. You try to recall the information he had just given, but nothing came to you. So you did the best thing you could think of… and copied Draco. He seemed too into what he was doing to really notice you for the moment.

"Stop what you are doing!" It was about fifteen minutes before class was to end. Snape goes back to the front of the classroom and asks for two volunteers. No one volunteers. You look up into Snape's eyes and he was smiling wickedly at you. A huge bright warning sign was going off in your head, but you brushed it off. I mean you had done nothing the entire class period to draw attention to yourself. And you even sat in the front. No way was he going to pick on you.

"Miss Iverson and Mr. Malfoy would you please come up here, and bring your potions." You kept in a groan. Seriously? You stood up and followed Draco, and turned around to face the classroom. You notice the funny faces Harry began flashing you. You try not to laugh. Draco just glares at Harry instead. Snape's voice interrupted your thoughts.

"If you did your potions correctly then when you drink it you will fall in love with the first person you see. And lucky for you two, you get to look at each other!"

The smile that was sitting on your face disappeared. No way. No offing way. You look up at Snape, his smile obviously growing at your reaction.

"Well, drink up." Draco downs a shot of the potion automatically. He takes one look at you and his face turns to mush. His eyes were all puppy dog like and he was smiling stupidly. It would have been cute if it wasn't Draco Malfoy.

"Thanks, but no thanks." You say going to sit down.

Laughter fills the classroom. Snape's harsh tone silences the room and stops you in your tracks.

"If you do not drink the potion, you will receive detention with me for a week." You turn around slowly. Stay calm you remind yourself.

"We already know the potion works, Draco looks pathetically in love with me against his own free-will."

"We do not know if yours will work." He adds snidely.

"I do. I copied Draco. If his works, as it so obviously does, mine will too. Demonstration complete." You say knowing you were digging yourself into a hole. If possible Snape's smile just got larger.

"Even if I did believe you, you still need to drink your potion. It is for the benefit of the class."

You just stared at him. Was he serious?

"And if you do not, the week of detention will start tonight at 8 sharp." You couldn't control your temper anymore.

"Better a weeks detention, nay a months detention, then actually have feelings for that." You shout pointing at Draco who seemed unabashed by your harsh words. It seemed to have been what Snape was waiting for though, because he stopped pushing. He pulled out a vile and gave it to Draco to drink. He did so and puppy dog look left his face immediately.

Snape turns back to you, "Your choice Miss Iverson. See you tonight. Class is dismissed." You stood there, anger coursing through you. Draco pushes past you. You wanted to scream. Instead you gave one last glare at the amused looking Snape, and departed.

Walking away you wondered why Snape seemed so smug. You had heard he was a dick, but that whole scene made it seem like he knew you would never have drank that potion. Someone taps you on the shoulder. You turn to see Harry.

"Yes I know, my first class and I got myself a weeks worth of detention. Splendid." He just chuckles as he falls into step beside you.

"Well you could have just drank the potion." You stop and face him.

"Did you actually say what I think you said? Did you forget everything I told you yesterday? I mean how would you feel if Voldemort had a daughter. Would you want to go fall in love with her? Especially against your will?"

He stares at you strangely.

"It's a hypothetical question Harry."

"Well, I guess when you put it that way. No, no I would not." A second of silence lapses before you both start walking again.

"And you're pretty brave to say his name. Not most people do." You didn't know how to answer really.

"It certainly isn't bravery." You admitted. "Oh and by the way, you haven't told anyone about who killed my mom right? Because I technically wasn't even supposed to tell you."

He shakes his head, "No I didn't tell anyone." You smile at him and look down at your schedule.

"Divination," you both say in unison. You chuckle along with him.

"This should be interesting." Harry says leading the way to the classroom.


	4. Crystal Balls

You arrive in divination. Harry and you see Ron and go over to sit by him. He had chosen a side table in the middle. Couldn't be worse then sitting in the front. Ron asks about Potions. You let Harry fill him in, noticing he still got a kick out of the whole thing. Ron shakes his head, laughing lightly. At that precise moment you see Draco enter the room.

"Are you kidding me??" you groan, hitting your head down on the table.

"What?" Ron asks looking around. Harry must have noticed him, because he adds dryly, "What is he doing here? This is supposed to be a class with just Hufflepuff and Gryffindor students." You glance up from the table and see Draco looking at you.

"Looks like someone has a stalker." Ron whispers jokingly.

"Fantastic." You mutter putting your head back down.

"Ah, Young Malfoy. I understand your fellow Slytherin's period conflicted with another class. Of course I already new this would occur. Just take a seat anywhere." The professor, an odd sort of woman named Trelawney, says airily upon entering the classroom. Draco doesn't even attempt a smile and starts to head over to you, taking a seat at the table right behind yours.

"Seems like we're going to be seeing a lot of each other." His voice annoyed you. You spun around quickly. His face was closer then you had expected. Only about a foot away. He smiled at your obvious surprise. Looking him straight in the eye you say,

"Harry? Ron? Do you hear something? Cause I know I don't."

"Lanae, I hear absolutely nothing." Harry says. Ron quickly agrees in a very serious tone. Draco's eyes narrow at you. You smirk slightly and turn around. Harry and Ron are grinning at you, and you couldn't help but enjoy in their amusement.

You knew as soon as Trelawney had caused the crystal balls to appear on each table that this class was going to be a joke. She had directed each of you to stare into the mystic orb and write down what you see. The three of you stared.

"See anything guys?" you ask hesitantly.

"Not a thing." Harry mutters darkly.

"Define anything." Ron adds. You chuckle trying to 'empty' your mind and become the magical energy within the ball. A sudden jolt of pain coursed through your left arm. You clutched it tightly. It had felt like you had been shocked. You look down and see nothing. The pain left as soon as it had arrived. You look into the ball again. A jolt of pain went through your right leg this time. You turn around and find Draco with a full smile on his face. He was looking at you, with his wand out on the table. You reacted before you really thought about it. Your wand was out. You flicked it at the crystal ball thinking wingardium leviosa, and then flicked it once more. The ball flew off its stand on Draco's table and hit him squarely in the chest, throwing him into the far back wall. Pandemonium ensued. While the rest of your class, including Harry and Ron were trying to figure out what had happened you sit back and find yourself looking into the crystal ball on your table.

A bright green snake slowly slithers around in a misty fog. It stops and looks directly at you, with its bright red eyes. You blink and the image disappears. Shaking your head you sigh. What was that?? The rest of the class went by in a blur, and you were off with Harry to your next one.

Lucky for you, Harry had almost all of your classes with you. During dinner he asked you if you were the one to cause Draco to fly off his ass. You chuckled and told him the truth, about him shocking you and your, not too subtle, reaction. You just failed to mention what you saw in the crystal ball afterwards.

"I can't believe he did that." Harry mutters.

"I am over it. He is probably just jealous anyways, cause he's the one that wants to be hanging out with the famous Harry Potter." Harry snorts, his laughter echoing throughout the whole dining hall.

"Well the famous Harry Potter would much rather be hanging out with you." He adds, once his laughter had died down. You could feel the pink creeping into your cheeks. Ron and Hermione join you a short while later, fascinating you with all the stories of their adventures the last couple of years.

Towards the end Harry seemed to stop talking altogether. His expression would darken the more Ron or Hermione would mention stuff about last year. You didn't exactly understand why he was so sad. And once Ron and Hermione noticed, they stopped talking too.

"Lanae, you have detention with Snape in ten minutes!" Harry suddenly says. Your eyes grow big.

"Oh crap," you mutter. "Thanks Harry. I will see you all later!" you shout racing down to the dungeons.

Detention was dull. You had to re-organize the ingredient closet in the potion classroom. Snape left you by yourself, and alone to your thoughts. You didn't want to think about it, and was happy that Harry had easily distracted you during dinner, but now the image in the crystal ball came back to your mind. You couldn't make it go away. The only other thing that seemed even remotely distracting was Harry's reaction the Ron and Hermione's story of last year. Something bad must have happened, and not a lot of people know about it. You shudder, feeling a coldness go through you.

After detention was over you could barely keep your eyes open enough to climb up to the Gryffindor tower and to your bed. The moment your head hit the pillow you were sound asleep.


	5. Trusting Feelings

The days and weeks following your first day were a lot less exciting, not that you minded. Ever since you hit Draco with the crystal ball he barely spoke to you, and kept a pretty big distance. You would still catch him looking at you every once in awhile, but he would look away as soon as you noticed. Which allowed you to hang out with Harry, Ron and Hermione without any distractions. You still thought about the vision, or whatever it was, a couple times every day, but you tried to not let it bother you. The four of you seemed to be really happy together. You do not think any of them notice the dark expressions that cross your face sometimes. Of course you do not know if Harry realizes how many times he looks increasingly depressed. Not that Ron and Hermione were oblivious. They were just too in love with each other to really see the little things in other people. Of course neither would admit it, which had you chuckling at night when Hermione would deny any feelings for Ron.

You found yourself late one night sitting on the couch in the common room trying to read a difficult passage about Thestrals. You groaned loudly slamming the book shut.

"No need to abuse your book." You look up and see Harry walking towards you.

"Hah, you sound like Hermione. I just do not understand why death is the key to see Thestrals is all. And I find this joke of a book completely useless." You say angrily. Harry chuckles.

"You think this is funny do you?"

"I do." He says taking a seat next to you. A silence falls between you two. You catch him staring into the fire, the same sad expression that he usually tries to hide was set firm on his face.

"You are not happy." You say lying the book on the floor. Harry turns to you a smile now on his face, "Of course I am. I'm sitting next to you." You chuckle but slowly shake your head.

"That is not what I mean. And you know it. Something is wrong. You look so sad so often."

"You're one to talk. You look like you're in pain half the time." He whispers coldly. Apparently he had noticed your dark expressions.

"I did not mean to judge or upset you. Really, I didn't. We became friends very quickly, and I would never expect you to just pour your heart out to me, believe me. But I do see the sadness you have in your eyes every day. And apparently you see mine. But you know why I am sad."

"I know you lost your mom Lanae.. but there is something beyond that. Something you are keeping from everyone." His statement shocks you into silence. "My Godfather was killed right in front of me last summer. It was my fault. He was there because of me and murdered because of me." Harry says slowly, painfully.

"I am sorry that you lost your Godfather. But you can't believe it was your fault though Harry."

"And what would you know? You weren't there." He responds harshly. You were taken aback. "I am sorry," he adds suddenly slumping farther into the couch, "You are just trying to help."

"No Harry. I am just being honest." You say smiling sadly at him.

"Just so you know… if you ever do want to talk about it, what happened and stuff, I'm all-ears." He smiles at you, the sadness gone from his eyes.

"Well I guess I will go to bed, don't want to fall asleep in history of magic again." you add standing up. Leaning down you go to pick up your book. Harry tries to help and your fingers brush together. The wildfire that rushed up your arm caught you off guard. If Harry noticed he didn't let on as he grabbed the book and held it up for you to grab. You take it.

"Thanks." You mutter.

"No, thank you. I feel like I can trust you Lanae." He says standing up as well.

"Good night." Harry smiles and heads back up to the boy's dormitory. "Good night." You call up after him.

That weekend was your first to Hogsmeade. Ron had talked it up for the last couple of days, talking about everything there. They candy and the shops, and especially the butterbeer. You had asked if you guys were allowed to drink it, and they had all laughed at you. You refrained from asking too many questions after that.

"Come on, let's take her to Madame Rosmirta's first!" Ron shouts excitedly walking quickly up ahead the three of you. Hermione did not look entirely please. Harry leaned down and whispered in your ear, "Ron has had a crush on Rosmirta for quite awhile." Ignoring the chills his voice caused, you nod knowingly, now understanding Hermione's annoyed expression. Taking a seat at a random table Ron looked like a kid waiting to open his Christmas presents. You chuckle sitting down next to him.

"Lanae, after we show you around, I want to show you something okay?" Harry asks pleasantly. You couldn't help but gulp, but nod slightly. You had not allowed yourself to be alone with him since that night a couple of days ago. Whatever fire you had felt in your hand scared the crap out of you. Harry was your friend and nothing else. He deserved for you to at least keep it platonic. The irony of your friendship was not lost on you, but it couldn't become anymore then that. Of course I am probably the only one even having these thoughts. He is probably hunky-dory just being my friend. I'm the emotional teenage girl. You think taking a sip of the butterbeer that was placed in front of you.

After the hours spent in the joke shop and candy shop and every other shop available Harry drags you away. You attempt to make small talk, having no idea where he was taking you.

"So I saw Neville trying to do this spell during class, and poor guy he just kept swishing his wand the wrong way, and I didn't know how to tell him without making him feel stupid. Of course not telling him only made him keep messing up, and by the time I had decided I was going to tell him class was dismissed and he walked out." You say in one breath.

"You're cute when you're nervous." He says smiling a small smile.

"I am only nervous, because I have absolutely no idea where you are taking me." You say shortly.

"Yeah yeah." He says grabbing your hand and pulling you into a faster pace. The warmth from his hand heated your entire body. Don't think about it, don't think about it. You keep telling yourself. He suddenly stops in front of a rickety fence.

"And this is the shrieking shack." Harry says throwing his arm out in a grandiose movement. Down a narrow path was a sloppily put together house. It looked like hell.

"NO way!" you shout jumping up and down. You had mentioned during one of his previous stories that the shrieking shack sounded impossibly cool. Harry chuckles watching you.

"Sorry, I lost my cool." You say gathering your composure.

"I have never told anyone the things I have told you." He says stepping closer to you. Your pulse seemed to quicken. "Well besides Ron and Hermione. But they don't count." He takes a step closer. "You confided in me too, and more quickly then I even thought possible. I did nothing to deserve your trust. You are so beautiful." Your breathing was erratic. In fact you had to take in a sudden breath because you had completely forgotten to breathe.

"Harry, you and I are friends." You say stoically, trying not to give way into any emotion. His hand reaches up and touches your cheek, sending warm tingles down to your neck.

"I know Lanae." He says softly. Your faces seem to be getting closer together, like you had no control over your body. You were staring into his green eyes, not knowing how to stop this. His lips were so close to yours.

"Harry?" you ask softly.

"Yes?"

"Could you get me a drink?" you ask, the first thing that popped into your mind. He doesn't move, "A drink?" His voice was amused and lighthearted.

"Yeah. I am really thirsty." You say smiling a little.

"Okay, stay here. One butterbeer coming right up." He says taking your hand and bringing it to his lips. He leaves you there, the place where his lips had touched your hand, burning.


	6. Responsibilities

You lean against the fence taking a deep breath. The cool air felt refreshing on your skin. What were you going to tell him? The truth? Not hardly. You and him could not happen. You knew that the moment you got the letter admitting you into Hogwarts. Of course you had no idea you'd become friends with him. And you had no idea that somehow every time he touched you, you are left wanting more.

"Calm down Lanae. You can control this situation." You say out loud.

"Talking to yourself is never a good sign." You hear. You turn around. Draco was walking up the path from Hogsmead towards you. Oh come on, do not start acknowledging my presence now. You think turning your back to him. Maybe if you ignored him he would go away.

"You really should try another tactic. Silence doesn't suit you" He says now leaning against the fence with you. You groan audibly.

"Why are you talking to me?"

"Because I got bored leaving you alone." He replies.

"I thought you were leaving me alone for your own safety." You turn to look at him. He was lounging sideways on the fence rolling his eyes at you.

"Of course you did. I saw you and Potter a couple of minutes ago. Here I was minding my own business, and what a shock, I see you two hanging all over each other." Your face heats up in embarrassment. So that's why he's bothering you, because of Harry and you. Even though there was no Harry and you.

"We didn't do anything Malfoy." You say through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, I noticed. But you want to don't you?" he says coldly. You say nothing, glaring at him. His fingers find their way up your arm, leaving a trail of cold icicles. Exact opposite of Harry. You grab his hand and twist it behind his back pushing him against the fence.

"Don't touch me." You push hard against him and then step back. He whips around eyes narrowed.

"I know you're secret Lanae. And you know that the likelihood of you getting Potter is the same as me getting you." Your eyes widen in disbelief.

"Don't look so shocked. Lucius is my dad after all. Or did you forget?" He says so coldly you couldn't imagine it was coming from the teenage boy in front of you. Anger coursed through you. Forget? He wishes. Without even taking out your wand you smash your fist into his face. You felt the crunch of his nose and saw the blood squirt out before you pulled back your arm. He wailed in pain.

"Now leave me alone." You say weakly.

"You'll regret this. I'll make you pay." He says through painful howls. He left you standing there just like Harry did only moments before. Before Draco came and ruined your perfectly lovely day. You seemed to sink into the ground as tears started pouring down your face.

"Lanae!" You don't look up when you hear Harry call your name.

"What happened? I saw Draco on the way back. He was cursing and blaming you for all the blood." You just nodded sheepishly. "Come on, let's get you back." He says lifting you up. You walk with him back to the center of town.

You met back up with Ron and Hermione in the Three Broomsticks. Hermione noticed your tear sod face immediately.

"Are you okay Lanae?" she asks rubbing your back.

"Actually, I think I am just going to head back to the castle early. Get a nap in or something." They nod, letting you head out the door. You hear footsteps follow you and turn to see Harry's concerned face watching your own.

"Do you want me to come back with you?" You wanted to shout yes. To give him a huge hug and just cry into his shoulder.

"Thanks, but I just need some time alone." You say plastering a smile on your face, reassuring him you'll be just fine.

Upon reaching Hogwarts main corridor you realize someone was coming towards you.

"Miss Iverson. What are you doing inside on such a beautiful day like this? Shouldn't you be at Hogsmead?" Snape asks with a cold insincerity.

"I wasn't feeling well so I came back early." You say lamely, trying to walk around him. He steps in front of you.

"I hope you know that I do not agree with Dumbledore in allowing you to stay here. You are a liability, and ultimately cannot be trusted." You look up at him. You shouldn't have been so surprised.

"You know? Dumbledore knows??" you say aloud, but finish the rest of the thought in your head. And Draco knows.

"Of course. And just a forewarning, you fraternizing with Harry Potter is not in his best interests, especially now since…"

You cut him off.

"I know, I know. I get it okay? Less fraternizing. But I will have you know, I have done NOTHING to deserve your wrath. Or anyone else's for that matter. And to top it all off," you are now raising your voice, "it is not my fault that I.." but your voice trails off as you hear loud footsteps coming from behind you. You turn around and see a whole lot of students heading your way. You turn back to face Snape, but he was gone, leaving you with unanswered questions and, if possible, an even worse feeling in your stomach.

You made your way to the great hall and sat down with your head on the table. What was I thinking? You chide yourself. Harry Potter. You go and get yourself involved with the Harry Potter. First you try to tell yourself not to like him, then Draco, and now Snape. You were admitting to yourself, you had grown fond of Harry. More then just fond. And he had tried to kiss you. Well and you almost kissed him. It was an almost kiss. And he had called you beautiful. He can't like you. That's just stupid. This whole situation was stupid. And it was all my fault you think, sighing. You'll just have to fix it.

"Are you doing any better?" Hermione asks, causing you to sit up.

"Yeah. Much." You say smiling at the three of them. Harry sat next to you. He tried to hold your hand, but the fire you felt brought more pain then pleasure. You pulled your hand away. Keeping it firmly on your lap. Throughout the dinner Harry would find different reasons to touch you, whether it was because you reached for the chicken at the same time, or you had something in your hair.

Finally during dessert you snap. Whispering coldly you say, "Harry, stop touching me." The look on his face, the one that looked more surprised then hurt, would remain with you throughout the evening, and even as you lied in bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Hey Lanae, can I bother you for a second?" Hermione asks taking a seat on your bed. You sit up slowly, "Sure Hermione."

"Well don't tell Harry I brought this up, but he told us about the shrieking shack, and the almost kiss. And I told him you've just been down because of the whole Draco is a jerk thing." She looked so hopeful. Like she was almost positive that Draco was the reason you had gone off to bed without even a goodbye to Harry. You shake your head slowly.

"Hermione, Harry is a great guy but he just isn't my guy. We are not supposed to be together." Hermione looks taken aback.

"So you don't like him?" she asks slowly.

"No, I don't. And to make it easier on him I just think him and I should refrain from hanging out."

"But, I don't think he would want that." She says sadly. Just tell him the truth and he'd want that, a little voice inside your head was screaming. Maybe it was selfishness but you'd rather push Harry away for his own sake, then him push you away just because he despised you.

"It will be better this way. Tell him I am sorry." You say. And with that you lie back down and turn over on your side, indicating the conversation was finished.


	7. Escape

The next day you leave early to avoid any run-ins with Harry. When you get to class you just sit there and stare down at your desk. This is how you are for another two weeks, only listening and speaking when you have to. Your grades are slipping and when anyone talks to you, you shrug them off. Especially Hermione or Ron. You didn't have to worry about Harry talking to you, you had made sure he hates you. The memory of your first encounter with him after what you had told Hermione was embedded in your brain.

*** "Lanae. What is going on?" Harry asks coming up to you after potions.

"I already told Hermione, I don't know why I need to say it again." You say walking away from him. He catches up to you in two strides.

"Yes, but it does not make any sense. I felt something. Something that I do not know how to explain." A fire that seems to burn away all your fears and doubts you think. That was the something.

"Well, I didn't. Sorry." He takes a giant step and puts his body in front of yours, blocking your way.

"You're lying. I can tell." He says a grin on his face. A pang of pain hit your stomach. You didn't want to hurt him, but this was for his own good. For your own good.

"Look Harry. You want honesty? I feel NOTHING. Nada. I feel more for my bed lamp, than I feel for you." You didn't dare look at his face. He was shocked into silence though. You stepped around him, and left him there alone in the hallway. ***

You can't even look at him anymore for fear of crying. He hadn't tried to talk to you since then. The last two weeks felt like two years. Walking down the hallway by yourself you were just left alone with your thoughts. You hear voices coming from up ahead. A hallway ran perpendicular to the one you were on, and it sounded like the voices were coming from there. You stop at the corner and listen.

"All I am saying is that she has changed." You didn't recognize this voice. It was deep, and raspy.

"Your point? I did my job. She is away from Potter." You cover your mouth with your hand. Draco was coming your way, and was talking about you.

"So you're just going to leave her alone? That doesn't seem like you." Another voice you didn't know adds.

"I never said that. You're talking to me like I don't already have a plan in motion." Draco says. The voices stop getting closer. They must have stopped walking.

"A plan? You didn't tell us." The first voice chimes up.

"Why would I tell you? You're not apart of it. All you need to know is that it is working." Draco says. You could hear the pride in his voice. So here you were listening to them talking about some plan he has for you, and you honestly didn't even care. You felt numb. What was he going to do here at school? What could he do to hurt you worse then you hurt yourself? And besides you had to get somewhere, and you weren't about to make a detour because the scum of the earth was standing in the hallway you were about to pass. You took a deep breath and walked straight ahead.

"Well speak of the devil." Draco says. You ignore him, continuing to walk down the hallway.

"Where might you be going?" Draco says catching up to you. The other two guys ran awkwardly behind the two of you. Stomping around.

"Would you guys go off somewhere? Maybe grab something to eat in the Great Hall." Draco remarks coldly to the guys behind you. The stomping receded, leaving you and Draco alone walking in an abandoned hall.

"So where were we?" he asks stepping closer to you. You stop suddenly, and face him.

"At the part where I tell you to go shove your head in a toilet somewhere." He doesn't even look offended. Annoyed with this situation you go to step around him. He steps in front of you, blocking your way. You place your hands on your hips, glaring at him.

"So did nothing happen between you and Potter?" he asks. You weren't going to let him interrogate you. You try and push past him, but he grabs your wrist. "Hold up, no need to get all pissy. So nothing happened; that's all you got to say." You look down at his hand, wishing you could bore a whole through it with your mind. He lets go of you.

"I don't get you." You say honestly confused.

"What's to get? I want you." He says pushing you lightly against the wall.

"Bull Shit. And you know it." You say. He wants me about as much as I want him, you think.

"But I might really want you." He says pushing his body against yours. Okay maybe I was wrong, you think pushing him off you as hard as you could. He stumbled back a little.

"And I might really want a normal life, with a happy family, where my mom was alive, and I didn't want my dad to rot in hell. But alas we can't all get what we might really want." You say so cold you swear you felt the air around you get a chilly. You spun around and began walking away.

"Accio Lanae's wand." You hear. Before you could grab it your wand flies from your pocket right into Draco's outstretched hand.

"What are you? Like 6 years old?" you ask walking back and taking a grab for your wand. He puts it out of your reach.

"Play nice Lanae." You were about to punch him again when he lifts up his wand and hits you with a spell. You fly back against the wall. Your eyes wide with a mix of anger and surprise.

"What are you doing?"

"I am taking what I want." He says stepping towards you. You try to move but find yourself not in control of your body. Fear begins to etch your facial features.

"Don't worry, you can move, only if I let you though. It is a neat spell, that has taken me two weeks to perfect." He stops right in front of you, his face so close you could feel his breathing.

"So what are you going to do? Rape me? Here in the middle of a hallway?" you ask, still trying to put up a defensive front.

"Rape? Seriously Lanae? I just want to kiss you. Is that such a bad thing? Maybe you'll even like it." His hand caresses your cheek, and just like two weeks ago his touch sent cold chills down your spine.

"You're a piece of sh.."

"Silencio," he says softly. Your voice disappeared.

"That's better." He says, and then leans in and presses his lips softly against your own. It shouldn't have surprised you, but it did. Mainly it was because the kiss was so soft and light. It didn't make you stop struggling though. Your hands were at your sides, and you couldn't even move your pinky. And even though you seemed to be able to move your lips you weren't. He was going to get no pleasure out of this. He seems to realize this and pulls away.

"Oh come on Lanae, I am not that bad of a choice. So Harry and you can't work out? C'est la Vie."

Your eyes began to tear up. This was not fair. All you wanted at that moment was Harry. Your eyes closed and imagined his smile. His laughter. You feel lips on your own again. It surprised you, but in a different way, because this time, with your eyes closed, you imagined Harry kissing you. And wanting you. Your lips parted and you kissed him back. How could you have ever pushed him away?? He had been the first person to trust you, and the first to really make you smile in so long. His kisses grew more intense, you could feel a yearning behind it. And you didn't fight it. You just kissed him back. And then you felt a hand on your waist and your eyes opened. It was Draco. Draco was kissing you, not Harry. Draco was forcing you to bend to his every whim. You try to bit his tongue.

"You are a feisty one, but you actually kissed me back… I knew you wanted me a little bit." He says smirking at you. You tried to make your glare as hateful as possible. You wanted to leave. You wanted to not ever see Draco again. Never wish to kiss Harry again. Never be here again. Come on, you think, I have to be able to do a little magic without my wand. Maybe a stunning spell, or something anything. To get away and then leave. Draco was back at it, trying to kiss you. Now you were just focused on trying to escape.

His lips began traveling down your neck, and his hands were places they should not have been when you gave up. No one was going to come, and you would be left here feeling used and abused and alone whenever Draco was finished having his fun. Your eyes shut tight trying to block the tears from falling, but a couple rolled down your cheek anyways. You opened your eyes and are shocked to see Harry standing behind Draco, looking beyond livid. You still couldn't talk but you gave him a pleading look, and mouthed, "Help me!" Harry taps Draco on the shoulder.

"Can't you see I am busy?" Draco says turning around, but before he even sees who bothered him Harry punches him and he is thrown to the floor. Unconscious.

You crumple to the ground. You felt week, and disoriented. You glance up to see Harry still standing there, looking, well you couldn't even describe it. He holds out his hand and you take it, standing up. Before you know what you are doing you throw your arms around him and hug him, letting out a sob. He hugs you back, tightly.

"Thank you Harry. Thank you so much." You sob into his neck.

He pulls away slowly, looking into your eyes. You knew he wanted you to explain. Not just this, but the last two weeks. You couldn't, and look away. He sighs sadly, and turns to go. You wanted to call out his name, but don't. Instead you slowly walk over to Draco, kick him, pick up your wand, and then kick him again.


	8. The Truth

You were sitting in the common room staring into the fire. It was later in the night, and about four hours have passed since the incident with Draco. You couldn't even explain the anger you have for him. You wanted to stick his face in a vat of acid. Not only had he taken advantage of you, but then Harry of all people comes along and sees it!! You couldn't even imagine what was going on inside his head at the moment. And it was all your fault.

"Lanae?" you turn your head and see Ron standing next to you.

"I need to talk with you." He says and then sits down beside you. You don't stop him. In fact having someone's company might actually be what you need right now.

"What can I do for you?" you ask trying to sound pleasant.

"It's about Harry." He says. Of course it is, you think groaning internally. How could you think you'd be allowed to have one minute without thinking about him. Your silence must have given him courage to go on.

"He told me about the Draco thing." Your face goes flush. You avert your gaze. How freaking embarrassing.

"Look at me Lanae." He says sternly. You do as he says. Ron had never been one to show authority, but you heard it in his voice now, and you weren't about to ignore it. He continues, "Harry does not seem to understand why you let Malfoy all over you. And frankly neither do I. I know enough about you to think that a) you can stick up for yourself and b) you hate the douche bag. And furthermore none of us can even comprehend what the hell happened between you and Harry. You were all flowers and butterflies one day and then the next only doom and gloom. And it would seem to me you haven't been happy since that day in Hogsmead two weeks ago!"

You kind of just look at him. You hadn't expected this to come from Ron, especially from Ron. You say the only thing you can, "I don't want to hurt him."

"Yeah well, you're doing a horrible job of it," He says harshly, standing up. You open your mouth to say something but no words come out. You didn't know what to say.

"Harry is in his room. Second door to the left." Ron says, and walks away, leaving you sitting there wondering what you should do.

Maybe I should at least go and explain the whole Malfoy thing. It did look bad, me not doing anything to Malfoy when he was all over me like that. You think standing up. But that is it. Nothing else. I say my little excuse and then leave you tell yourself as you walk up to the boy's dormitory. When you reach the second door on the left you knock lightly.

"Come in!" you hear his voice say. You push the door open and walk in, shutting it behind you. Harry is sitting in a chair reading a book. He looks up.

"Oh its you…" he says in a rather surprised tone. You couldn't tell if he was glad or upset you were standing there, in his room.

"Hi Harry." You say quietly, taking him all in. He was just sitting there, only wearing a pair of old looking blue jeans. No shirt.

"Um.. I need to explain something to you." You say, trying to keep your eyes on his face rather then his body.

"Go on." he says looking back down at what looked a lot like the potions book. Before you could change your mind, your explanation poured out of you.

"The reason why you saw me not struggling against Malfoy was because I couldn't. He had used magic to get my wand away from me, and then used a spell to be able to control my body. I swear I tried to get away, but he way too strong and without magic it was hopeless." You finish, just wanting him to understand.

"Oh okay." He says not even looking up, and not sounding the least bit interested.

"Well, okay. So now you know. And thanks again, for helping me." You say turning around to leave.

"Wait Lanae." Harry says causing you to turn back around. "Can I ask you a question?" he asks you as he lays his book down and walks towards you.

"Um sure?" you reply, even though a gut feeling was telling you to make a run for it. You make the mistake of looking him up and down as he made his way towards you. You had to focus on not telling him… oh crap wait what were you not supposed to tell him? God damn he is so gorgeous. Not helping! You think.

"How come you have been so distant lately? I mean I understand you do not like me that way." He says frowning, "but why have you decided to end it all together? You were a great and fun friend and now you don't even acknowledge my presence anymore." You were staring at the floor while he was talking but towards the end looked up into his big green eyes and got lost in them.

"I.. uh.." you stammer trying to think. I can't tell him the truth, that's what I can't tell him. The truth being that if you did acknowledge his presence you would end up admitting your feelings for him and all would be lost. This is why you were not supposed to put yourself in situations like the one you were in right now. With Harry standing not even three feet away from you. Half naked.

"You just do not understand." You manage to spit out.

"Don't understand what Lanae?" he says grabbing you hand gently. You jerk it away, his touch sending fire throughout your whole body. You were looking at the floor again.

"I.. um, I.." you stutter trying to think of a complete sentence to say. Suddenly before you could stop yourself words began to spill out.

"I can't feel anything for you. If I let myself feel for you, or let you feel for me, then in the end we'll just end up hurting each other. This way I stopped it from happening. We can refrain from hurting each other. And I just can't hurt you." You look up at him.

"What do you mean you stopped it from happening? You mean you lied? Did you lie to stop us from happening? Do you really have feelings for me? Tell me the truth Lanae, you can't hurt me anymore than you already have." He says, a sense of hope filling his voice, now standing very very close to you.

"Yes I can.." you find yourself whispering, trying to back away. The feelings and emotions you had been trying to repress for the last two weeks were bursting inside of you.

"No. You can't," he says stepping closer to you. You look down at the floor. He raises your chin with a finger, so you're looking into his eyes. The spot his finger was touching your skin heated your face. "Tell me Lanae. Do you like me? Really like me?" he asks, while his eyes seem to bore into your very being. You couldn't stop yourself.

"Yes."

* * *

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	9. Red Eyes

Harry leans down and kisses you. His lips were so soft, and sent the wave of fire down to your toes. You longed to kiss him back, but if you did, well you just knew you shouldn't. You couldn't get caught up in your emotions. You try to pull away but find that Harry has wrapped his arms around your waist, and thus pulls you in closer. Without meaning to you start to kiss him back. You bring your hands up and run your fingers threw his already messy hair. The kiss gets intense as he begins pulling you towards the bed, staying lip-locked the entire time. Without entirely thinking about it your hands begin to travel down his chest. You hear him let out a slight moan. It was that moment that you guys got back in control. He slowly stopped kissing you and leaned his head back. You, using the bed to lean up against, sigh. Your bodies untangle and finally he is far enough away from you that you can see his whole face, and the smile that was plastered on it. You knew you were grinning ear to ear too.

"I am sorry." He says, even though you could tell by his intense look he was lying.

"Me too." You reply, not taking your eyes away from his. Before you knew what you were doing you were kissing him again. This time you backed him into the wall. His hands began traveling down your back, holding you as close as humanly possible.

Suddenly you hear a piercing scream. The kissing stops, and you both run out the door and down to the common room. You gasp loudly. There in front of you was a snake, with red eyes, and it was slithering right towards Hermione.

Harry rushes down the steps and stand in between the snake and Hermione.

"Get away from her." Hermione steps back, almost falling over a pile of books, and rushes over to Ron. The snake ignores Hermione and stays focused on Harry.

"Leave." Harry says pointing to the door.

A girl behind you whispers to no one in particular, "I wish I could understand what he is saying."

You turn around quickly asking, "What do you mean? You can't understand him?" She looks at you like you're crazy.

"Uh no. He is speaking parsel-tongue, Duh."

Not good you think turning back around. Harry is still trying to order the snake to leave, as it slowly slithers closer and closer to him. All of a sudden the snake pulls back; ready to strike.

"Wingardium-Leviosa!" you shout pointing your wand straight at Harry. He rises in the air quickly, just in time for the snake to miss its' target. You place Harry down behind the crowd, away from the snake. The snake seemed confused, not being able to see where Harry went. You step out of the crowd and place your foot on its back.

"What do you want here?" you ask the snake.

The room that was once silent began muttering in astonished voices. The snake turns its head and looks at you.

"I have been sent to give you a message, Lanae Anderson." The snake hisses.

"Well then get on with it, and leave everyone else out of it." You say pushing down a little harder on your foot when the snakes eyes began searching for Harry once again.

"My master, Lord.." it starts, but you cut it off,

"I know who your bloody master is, now tell me what he wants me to know."

"HE has informed me to tell you that he expects you to meet him out by the darkest part of the forbidden forest tomorrow, and you are supposed to bring Harry Potter."

You couldn't help from laughing.

"Please, please tell your master that this has got to be the funniest thing in the entire world. He has never even met me, so please, explain to your master that the first time will not be in the middle of a dark forest with the company of Harry Potter." You say ending in a cold tone.

"He said you would react this way, and to warn you that," the snake continued but you interrupt it again.

"Listen bud, you tell him exactly what I said okay? And next time I see you, I will be the last thing you see." You say taking your foot off of it, "Now go." You say.

The snake moves towards the window and slithers out of it. A sigh seems to escape everyone's mouth, and then the awkward silence began. Everyone was staring at you. You walk up to Harry who had moved back to the inside of the circle.

"Can we talk in private?" you ask. Not waiting for an answer you grab his arm and pull him all the way to your room.

When you get inside you close the door and lock it. "What was that all about? And you can speak parsel-tongue too?" Harry exclaims sitting down on your bed.

"Well I didn't know you could speak parsel-tongue either if that is any consolation." You say trying to keep him from asking what the snake and you were talking about.

"So what was the snake talking about anyways?" Great, a no-go on changing the subject, you think. "I mean it sounded like.." he says but doesn't finish, his voice trailing off.

"What did it sound like Harry?" you ask.

"No way. I mean it couldn't be. I mean how could you know him? Or for that matter, he know you?" Harry says sort of rambling to himself.

"Harry look at me, I need you to tell me what you are thinking. I need to know if now is the right time to tell you." You say but then covering your mouth. You had not meant to say the last part out loud.

"Tell me what?!" he asks incredulously.

"Harry I don't know if I should. I don't know how you would treat me, what your reaction would be.. and after tonight I don't know how I could take it."

"Alohamora!" someone shouts causing the door to burst open. Hermione was standing there.

"What do you want?" Harry asks annoyed.

"Professor Dumbledore just sent an owl up, he needs to speak to Lanae."

"Oh okay." You say giving her a nod. You turn back to Harry. "We will finish this conversation the moment I get back okay?" He brings up his hand to touch your cheek.

"Okay." He says bringing a small smile to his face.

You lean in and kiss him softly on his lips. "We'll talk about us when I get back too. In the meantime, I officially like you. A lot." You say standing up. "Okay Hermione, so where do I go?" you ask following her out the door.

Dumbledore's office was just as you remembered it a month ago when he sorted you there. Except he was already waiting, sitting behind his desk.

"Sorry to call you here so late in the night." Dumbledore says ushering you to a chair. You couldn't help but laugh. It was only nine o'clock. "I just needed to call you in as soon as possible. You see I heard about the incident in the common room just now." He says smiling.

"Wow, news travels fast." You say not knowing what to say. He just smiles a small smile and nods. Before you could stop yourself you end up asking, "Professor Dumbledore? How long have you known?" He didn't beat around the bush like you thought he would. Asking what you were talking about, or trying to change the subject.

"So you know I know? Well to tell you the truth, I have always known. Your mother came to me as soon as she realized." He says gently.

"Oh, okay." You mutter surprised. "Lanae it is not your fault." He says, his voice full of compassion. "I did not call you down here however to talk about that or the snake mishap. I need to talk about a power you need to know about." He says looking straight into your eyes.

"A power?" you say looking rather confused.

"Yes, a power. One that I think you may have." He adds, smiling.


	10. Voiced

"It was a power your mother had, but did not tell you about." He says looking intently at you.

"A power? Well what if I do not want this power?" you ask skeptically.

"It does not matter particularly if you want it or not Lanae. It was a part of your mother and most likely a part of you."

"Oh," you mutter, "What is the power?"

"Did you ever hear your mother sing?" he asks.

What a random question. Here we are in the midst of talking about some weird power I might have and he asks me if my mother can sing. Dumbledore is a strange bird. You think trying not to chuckle.

"Yes. Of course. We sang together a lot actually. In the car especially." You answer smiling at the memory.

"Okay, but that was when you were alone. Did she ever sing in public? With other people watching?"

Was he seriously continuing with this weird questioning? But as you tried to remember all the times you had sung together, it always seemed to be when you two were alone. Even when your friends were in the car she had never sang. That's odd, you think.

"Actually, I don't think she ever did." You admit, allowing the confusion to reach your voice.

"Do you have any idea why?" he asks.

You look up at him. Visibly upset. Why was he asking you these things about your mother? Making you remember things you had taken pains in trying to forget. You missed your mother so much. And he was not helping.

"Actually I forgot to ask her before she died. My bad." you say icily.

"I am sorry, that was insensitive. Lanae, my point is that your power has to do with your voice. Your mom was part siren."

You stare at him. "Wait, what?!" I ask.

"You're mom was part siren." He repeats.

"So you're talking about the mythological creatures that would sit on rocks out in the ocean and lure men to their deaths with their voice?"

"That would be the condensed version, but yes." He says calmly, waiting for your reaction.

"So, what is your point Professor? Because at this rate I am going to die myself before I understand what you're getting at."

"You're mom had the ability to control and manipulate people with her voice. The easiest way was by singing, but she eventually learned how to do it by just talking. And according to my theory you should be able to do this as well. Of course you will only be half of whatever percentage your mom was, so that will affect the strength of your power."

You honestly didn't know if you should laugh or not. Your mom, a siren? Or part Siren? Why wouldn't she have told you? Why would she have kept that a secret from you? And it didn't make any sense… you had been in numerous choirs and never put someone under some goofy spell. This was insane.

"I know you may think it is improbable Lanae. But I promise you, your mother had this power. Why she kept it from you I do not know. Maybe she was afraid of her own power, maybe she was afraid you would be. Either way it is the truth. And I knew you had to know." He says almost as if he was reading your mind.

"Okay, even if I did somehow believe you, how does this power of mine work? Is there an instruction manual she left me?"

"Alas, no. There is no one-hundred percent guarantee you even have her power. The gift very well may have skipped you. But maybe now that you know, so will your power and maybe it will be of some use to you. In the future." He says kindly.

"In the future when I want to force people to do my bidding?" you take a deep breath and continue, "I am not going to say I believe you. But thank you for filling me in. I will practice sometime." Though how you practice something you might not even have the ability to do was beyond you.

"Good. I am glad. You can head back now. It is getting pretty late, and you look exhausted."

You nod slightly, standing up, but then hesitate. Something had been nagging at you the entire time he was rambling about this whole siren power you might maybe may have. Harry.

"Professor? I have feelings for Harry Potter." You blurt out.

He looks at you with a funny looking smile and responds, rather tickled, "Lanae, I am not one to come to for any advice involving the teenage love life."

"You had to have known that wasn't what I meant by telling you that." You say, trying not to lose your temper. "I meant, should I tell him?"

His comical expression turned serious in an instant. "Lanae, it is up to you. He will find out sooner or later. And if you really do have feelings for him, then I suggest telling him sooner rather than him finding out later. Keeping it from him will only lead to betrayal."

"Thank you professor. You're not too bad in the advice department," you say, smiling up at him. You then turn around and leave him chuckling silently to himself in his office.

As you walk back to the Gryffindor common room you find yourself debating what had just taken place. Dumbledore had to be insane. I mean even if I believed his whole spiel, there would be no way to prove it. I was not going to start singing randomly in hopes someone gets all glassy-eyed, you think. Your mother would have told you. And then somehow that transitioned over to Harry, and the fact you still didn't know what to do. Harry wasn't stupid, he'll figure it out soon, and you don't know what will happen when he does. You decide to tell him. Tonight.

"I'm not going to be getting any sleep tonight." You mutter out loud.

"You got that right." A cold voice says behind you.

You turn around as fast as you could, but not before you are hit with a spell and your wand flies far away from you. You look down the hallway and see three shapes coming towards you. And you knew one of them was Draco.

"You shouldn't be out in the halls by yourself so late at night Lanae." He says coming into view, his two goons trying to keep up with him.

"You shouldn't be such a douche bag, but I don't go around ordering you about now do I?" you snap. You did not have time for his games. You start walking over to pick up your wand.

"I wouldn't do that Lanae." Draco says, pointing his wand at you. You stop moving and just look at him.

"What are you going to do now? Rape me?"

"Don't think it hasn't crossed my mind Anderson. You're lucky, bigger things are in motion tonight." He says now close enough he grabs your neck. You had been planning to punch him and make a run for it, but his last statement sent a tremor of fear down your back.

"What do you mean?" you ask giving him the coldest glare possible.

"You know Harry was looking for you." Draco says, emphasizing the was.

You push him away from you. You didn't want him near you, let alone touching you. "What did you do?" you ask angrily.

"Nothing he wouldn't have done to us." He spits out. The other two goons chuckle evilly. A raw sense of foreboding trickled down your spine. "We put him in a safe place for now. Well semi-safe I guess. If you call a place with a dementor safe." You knew that was impossible. It was wasn't it? At least not hear on campus.

"You're bluffing." You say trying to stall in hopes a plan would formulate in your mind.

"He's not actually."

"Really funny from our point of view."

"And we got his wand."

The two goons were talking. You didn't know which said what but it gave you enough of a distraction to punch Draco in the face and dive for your wand.


	11. Contact

With your wand in your hand you stand up and quickly turn around to face your attackers. Draco's lip was bleeding slightly, and the two idiots were looking completely surprised. "Smooth Lanae. You are really winning me over." Draco says wiping the blood from his mouth.

"And I care about winning you over because?" you say not lowering your wand even a fraction of an inch.

"Because Harry Potter really is locked in a room with a dementor. And I really do not feel like taking you there anymore." Draco replies coldly.

Breathing heavily you stare at him. He couldn't be serious. Could he? Looking into his cold blue eyes your assurance faltered. Your dad knew you were here, and with your Dad a lot of things were possible.

"Tell me where he is." You say calmly. If you kept your cool you wouldn't have to hurt them.

"No." Draco replies, smirking.

With a flick of your wand one of the goons flies back into the wall and crumples to the ground.

"Wanna try that answer again?" you say coldly. Draco still looked calm; the other guy looked the opposite.

"Not really."

Another flick of your wand and the other goon met the same fate as the first. Both lying limply on the floor. You stroll up to Draco and place your wand directly under his neck and look up into his eyes.

"You know the clock is still ticking away, and I am still not going to tell you anything."

Your eyes narrowed and you couldn't help but slap him. If Harry was hurt in anyway you were going to lose it, and you don't think Draco knew how bad that would be. With a red mark on his cheek he continued to just look down and smirk at you.

"Again, not that convincing. You have to really want me to tell you." Draco says laughing a little bit.

Was he crazy? What did you have to do to get this guy to tell you where Harry was? And then it came to you, from out of nowhere. And it was obviously and completely absurd, but you did it anyways, without logically thinking it out.

Picking the Mary had a little lamb tune you begin to sing the words, "Show me where Harry Potter is, Harry Potter is, Harry Potter is. Show me where Harry Potter is and I will let you live."

"Seriously Lanae?" Draco tries to say in the midst of his laughter. You roll your eyes. Well at least it was worth a shot, even if it did make you look like a complete retard. But a second later Draco stopped moving entirely and just looked at you blankly.

"Draco?" you say backing away from him a tad. In that instant you gave him enough room to move and he began to walk down the hallway. He didn't say a word, or look behind him to make sure you were following. Confused you walk quickly to catch up with him. Maybe this was a trap. Or maybe it actually worked. Suddenly Draco stopped in the middle of a blank wall. Okay so maybe the whole singing power didn't work very well. In fact maybe it made people just go crazy, you think as you watch Draco begin to pace back and forth in front of the wall like three times. Right before you were going to grab a hold of him and shake him out of his trance, at least that had been your plan, a door appeared out of the wall. Draco still looked incredibly blank as he opened the door and walked in. Without really thinking you followed him. Inside there was no dementor. A small sense of relief washed over you. Thank God, but you did see Harry crumpled in a ball in the far corner of the room. It looked like a small dungeon, and it gave you the creeps. You run over and kneel down beside him.

"Harry? Harry are you okay?" you ask shaking him slightly. He sits up suddenly and looks at you, smirking. You gasp jumping away from him.

His eyes were a blood red color. And you knew it was not Harry's voice that came out when his mouth opened.

"Hello Lanae."

Oh shit.

"Get out of him. Leave. Why are you here? Go the hell away!" you shout, not knowing what else to really do.

"Oh Lanae, you really are naïve you know that?" he says, if at all possible even colder then before.

"Like I care what you think. Get out of Harry now! I am not yours to command!" you shout again standing up just like Harry's body did.

"This is so touching. You care about Potter." He says his eyes narrowing. You pull out your wand and aim it directly at his heart.

"Do it. I dare you." He says with a laugh.

You shudder. You knew then that you would only be killing Harry. But how could you make him go away. Harry needed his body back; he needed to wake up! In that second you throw your wand down and rush over to Harry's body. The voice laughs cruelly.

"What are you going to do Lanae? Hug me out of him? This will be entertaining."

"Get over yourself. I am going to make him remember who he is." And with that you close your eyes and kiss Harry. Not even a second later you feel Harry grow week and fall into your arms. When you help steady him and look into his eyes you couldn't help but smile. They were the beautiful shade of emerald you always were dreaming about. You give him the biggest hug imaginable.

"I was so scared." You mutter into his shirt.

"Lanae, what happened? What's wrong?" he asks, in his own voice. He sounded so concerned as he hugged you back. You pull away slightly and smile up at him. He was okay. And you knew you had a lot of explaining to do.

"I need to tell you something." You say, but before you could say another word you scream out in pain. The cruciartus curse. You had felt it before. All you could think was that you had to protect Harry. But your body couldn't take anymore causing you to fall to the floor unconscious.

A twig snapped under the weight of someone's foot. The quiet sound reached your ears and caused your eyes to open. You were tied up, back against a tree trunk. You sighed. How original. Squinting through the darkness your eyes began to adjust to the lack of light. Trees were all around you, and so were hooded figures.

"Forbidden Forest. Nice rendezvous point." You say coldly.

"Only the best for you." You hear a low voice say mockingly. This seemed to cause a good amount of laughter erupt from the heard of brainless wannabes. You tried to reach for your wand, but then remembered you had thrown it down back in that room. Great. Think Lanae. Obviously he is not here yet, so I guess my best bet is to ruffle some feathers. I'm good at that. You think glaring at all the people around you.

"So how about some introductions. I am Lanae Anderson, as you all obviously well know. And you all are?" you ask in a mockingly sweet tone. No one answers.

"Well that is kind of rude, ignoring me. Not that dragging me out here against my will wasn't rude either." At this one of the hooded figures moves slightly. You smirk.

"I guess since you are all so good at following orders no one will mind if I just start making conversation with myself? Not like I would have gotten a logical conversation out of any of you anyways."

This time some of the other hooded figures moved slightly as well. I guess they didn't like taking crap from me so much. You think, wondering how you could add fire to the flame.

"You know what would be a fun topic to talk about? Draco Malfoy." You say grinning happily. The stillness of the group was amazingly sound this time, like they had prepared themselves. It almost made you want to laugh.

"Still no one jumps in. Hmm. Draco Malfoy. What to say about that douche bag? Well first off I would bet that his penis is probably the size of a worm. Not that I have seen it of course; that would be just plain disgusting. It just seems like he is compensating for something you know what I mean?" you say, noticing once again that the hooded figure that had moved at the beginning seemed to move uncomfortably, but then the one next to him jabs him in his side. You continue.

"And then to make matters worse he has no idea what the word no means. You'd think it would be one of the first lessons you teach a kid. But he has no clue. I say no to every advance he makes at me. I say no to every little sexual innuendo and suggestion he does. Yet he still doesn't get that I would not fuck him if he were the last person on this God forsaken Earth!" you shout, almost maniacally.

This time it caused the same hooded figure to step forward, with his wand aimed directly at you. "You would if you were made to." Draco says harshly. You smile broadly.

"Thanks Malfoy," you say. And a second later his wand flies from his hands and into your own. They all move toward you simultaneously, but the ropes tying you up disappear and you jump away from the tree and point the wand at all of them.

"You can't kill us all." A hooded figure to your right says menacingly.

"Oh now you want to talk. And besides I am not going to kill you all. Just one." You say turning back to Draco.

"Take off your hood." You command. He does so revealing his face. "Where is your father?"

You stand there smirking, waiting for his answer. Suddenly you feel a dark presence surround you. You couldn't tell if anyone else notice but you knew what it was.

"Gah never mind Draco. I'll deal with you later." You say coldly, the smirk dissolving from your face. You held the wand still aimed for Draco, but turn your attention to the left and say to the moving shadow in the background, "Look who decides to grace us with his presence."

You heard his laugh, and it sends coldness over your skin. The hooded figures part making a path for the shadow to come closer. "Very well done Lanae."

You lower your wand knowing you wouldn't be able to do anything at this point. "Well what do you expect from your own daughter?" you ask sweetly.

You hear some of the hooded figures gasp. Okay so not all of them knew why you were here then. Interesting.

"I would have expected her to obey me and not have been such a pain to get." The shadow says pulling off his own hood revealing himself. You look into the cold snake-like red eyes and reply, "Well that's me."

Silence. You couldn't help but roll your eyes. Patience was never one of your better qualities.

"So what are you planning to do with me now?"

Your voice carried catching a few people off guard causing them to jump. You however continued to look into the eyes of the man that most wizards feared more than anything.

"I plan to ask you one simple question that will either change your life or end it." He says crisply. You look at him for one more long moment before replying.

"Whatever you say. But before you get to that one simple question I need to ask two."

"Go ahead." He says looking amused.

"Well actually they aren't for you." You say smiling broadly turning around towards Draco yet again. "When you knocked me out and dragged me out here what did you do with Potter?" you ask. You had no intentions of letting everyone know, especially your dad how worried about Harry you really are. Hence the sir name.

"He is still in the room. Knocked him out. Not like it was hard to do." Draco says nonchalantly, causing others to laugh around him. You roll your eyes.

"So there was the boy-who-lived knocked out on the floor and you decided to just bring me to my father. Smooth Malfoy."

That seemed to shut him up pretty quickly, and gave everyone else the impression that any feelings you had for Harry were only of sheer indifference. At least for the most part.

"And second. What did you think was going to happen, Draco, when I realized it was you who used the cruciartus curse on me?" you ask frowning slightly.

"Well, I..." he stammers.

"I don't think you thought at all." You say calmly as you raise your wand.

"My Lord…" a voice to your right says nervously.

"Now Lanae I can't have you hurting my soon to be death eaters so put your wand down." That was Voldemort's voice, and you really really didn't want to listen but knew you should. Rolling your eyes you lower your wand.

"I owe you Draco Malfoy. Don't forget that." And with that you turn around and face your dad. "Okay, done with my questions."

"Very well then, I will get on with mine." He says almost cheerfully. Well as cheerfully as you can imagine Voldemort sounding.

"Are you with me or against me?" he asks looking into your eyes. You take a deep breath and swallow the fear that was slowly creeping up from your stomach. You think about the question. With him you would get power and blah blah blah. Against him you would get Harry. Honestly it wasn't that hard of a choice. However, explain to any dad that you're choosing a boy, let alone a boy that he has sworn to kill countless times, over him and he'll go berserk and in your case definitely kill you. So how to get out of this predicament. That is where you are right now as you stared up into his cold eyes. And then just as suddenly as it happened last time you thought of it. Smiling you take a deep breath and open your mouth and began to sing.

"You will all stay here until the sun hits you. Do not move a muscle until the light touches you. Now go to sleep."

At first everyone looked like they were about to laugh and then they looked pissed, especially Voldemort and then a second later they all looked mesmerized and as you tell them to fall asleep they all shut their eyes including Voldemort. As the silence settled you began to notice the stillness around you. Before you could take another breath you speed off praying that your voice hypno thing works. Running as fast as you can you pass tree after tree not caring about the branches that kept scratching your arms and neck. You had no idea what time it was, and now that you thought about it maybe sunrise wasn't going to be long enough to get away. Finally the trees begin to clear and you see the castle. With one last burst of energy you make you're way through Hogwart's gates and on into the corridors. You slow down a little bit, trying to catch your breath but still needing to reach Harry. You find your way back to the room of requirement, currently hidden as the wall. You walk in front of it a couple of times only wanting to see Harry hoping it would open for you. As the door appears so does the sun. The rays of light cascade down the hallway. You grab the handle and wrench open the door. There on the floor asleep was Harry. You run over and hug him.

"Lanae! Oh thank God you're okay." Harry says once he realized it was you hugging him awake. He grabs you and wraps his arms tightly around you. Without meaning to you let out a sob into his shirt. He pulls back slowly.

"Lanae what happened? What is wrong?"

You try to smile but can't. "Harry I have got to tell you something, before I can really explain anything that happened tonight." You finish looking down at the floor.

"What is it?" he asks in the probably the most concerned voice you had ever heard from a guy. He took his fingers and lifted your chin up to look him in the eyes. You take a deep breath.

"Harry you have to promise me that you will hear me out okay? You have to remain calm and just talk it out with me."

Harry looks more worried then ever. "Lanae what is it? What is so bad that it would upset me that much?" he asks.

It's now or never you think.

"Well I am…" you start but stop as you hear the door open and turn around to face Draco.

"The sun is up," he says glaring at you, "And he is livid."

You didn't need Draco to tell you who the HE was. But Harry had no clue, and was looking at you now confused. "Who is livid?" Harry asks you.

"Um, no one." You say quickly as you stand up, hoping he would not press the matter.

"You mean your lover boy doesn't know?" Draco says to your back.

"Know what?" Harry asks standing up and looking at you. But you turn around and face Draco. "If you know what is good for you then you will leave right now. I was just about to tell him, I do not need your help."

Draco looks past you and at Harry.

"I do not understand what she sees in you. I mean her father is going to have a complete field day when he finds out."

Harry looked upset now, like he was remembering all the crap Draco had just pulled in the last 12 hours. He started for Draco. "Her father Draco? Really? I don't even know her father. Why would he care about Lanae and I? Because at this point I think you are just fishing for ways to upset me."

You stood in between the two of them. They were both glaring at each other. And before you could do anything Draco responded.

"Fishing huh? I forget she hasn't told you. You and her father are great pals, well when he isn't killing your Mum and Dad." Draco says coldly. You punch him in the face, knocking him down, and then turn to see Harry's face as white as snow.


	12. Dealing With It

Malfoy's laughter reached your ears. You wanted to turn around and kick him but couldn't take your eyes off of Harry. He looked like he was in pain.

"Is it true?" Harry asks, staring at you.

"Harry, I…" you start but he cuts you off.

"No Lanae, just answer the question. Is that true? Are you really Voldemort's daughter?" he says, spitting out the last part. You didn't know what to do. You couldn't lie to him, but you were so much more then just Voldemort's daughter, but all you could do was look to the ground and nod.

When you look up the hatred in Harry's eyes shocked you.

"Harry?" you mutter reaching out to touch him. He swats your hand away.

"I cannot believe I fell for Voldemort's daughter. Of all the people in the world, I had to go get feelings for you. It probably isn't a coincidence is it? This was a plot made up by your dad no doubt."

You didn't want to interrupt Harry in his rage, but he was so wrong. Technically tonight was the first time you had even seen your dad. You would never hurt Harry, not on purpose.

"And it's even funnier because I remember when you gave me that hypothetical scenario. You asked me if Voldemort had a daughter would I want to go falling for her and I said no. Kind of ironic now isn't it?"

You just look at him, not knowing what to do. "I am so sorry."

He gives you one final glare before pushing past you and walking out the door.

"Harry!" you shout turning around to follow him. You take two steps out the door before you trip over something landing flat on your face. You look up to see Harry turn down the hallway disappearing from sight. You groan rolling over on your back. You look up to see Draco standing over you.

"Get away from me." You shout trying to sit up, but find it increasingly difficult as he gets down on his knees straddling you and puts his hands on your shoulders pushing you down. You could not believe the nerve this guy had, and after everything he had pulled today.

"Draco I am asking nicely. Get off me so I can go talk to Harry."

"You don't expect him to let you run into his arms and explain everything do you? Not now that he knows whom you come from. Think about it Lanae, your Dad killed his parents, not to mention thousands of others." He replies calmly.

"Well your Dad killed my mother. You don't actually expect me to run to you now do you? I mean think about it Draco." You say mockingly, struggling to get out from under his grip. His face goes a shade paler then usual, but he doesn't budge.

"She wasn't supposed to die Lanae. He was just trying to get you. I am sorry. But even then how can you keep blaming me for my fathers actions?"

The weight of his words hit you squarely in the face. You were being completely hypocritical. Not that Draco hadn't merited some of the hatred you had brewing for him with all of his antics and juvenile stupidity, but the core of hate that you held for him was misplaced. He wasn't his dad. Just like you weren't yours. And if you ever expected Harry to understand, you had to understand as well. Sighing you stop struggling and look up into his piercing blue eyes.

"Exactly Draco. I can't." you say slowly starting to smile.

A look of understanding seems to pass over his face. You try to sit up again but he still remains on top of you.

"Draco it is time to get off of me."

"Fine Lanae, but when you realize Harry doesn't trust you and will not forgive you I will always be here. Waiting." He whispers into your ear. Before you could give a witty come back about how this still doesn't change the fact you have no feelings for him he presses his lips against yours. You were shocked into stillness. His kiss was soft and seemed to be filled with more then just a burning lust for you. He pulls away and looks into your eyes.

"Um okay Draco. I'll be sure to remember that." You say awkwardly. He stands up and offers you his hand. You take it and stand up. He wasn't smirking; he wasn't even smiling. He looked thoughtful. You still felt the urge to punch him in the face but you knew you'd have plenty of time to do that later, and without another word you headed off in the direction Harry had taken.

Confused you walk the hallways. Abandoned this early in the morning you felt utterly alone. Draco was the enemy, period. So you were going to have to stop fraternizing with him. Even when you were insulting him it seems to egg him on, so no more of that or something stupid was going to happen. Not that you particularly wanted to think about Draco, but that stopped you from thinking about how much the look on Harry's face had hurt you. It had only been about ten minutes of searching but you knew you weren't going to find him, so you headed back to the common room.

You walk into an empty room. It was the weekend after all, and it was 630 in the morning. You had no sleep, but felt like your brain wasn't going to allow you any now either. You fall into the couch in front of the burning fireplace. Maybe Draco was right, maybe trying to get Harry to believe me is pointless. You think staring into the fire. You were so caught up in your thoughts you didn't notice someone come take a seat next to you.

You look up in surprise to see Ron looking at you curiously.

"Do you know where Harry is?" you ask suddenly.

"No. I haven't seen him since yesterday night when he went looking for you. Which reminds me, why are you up so early anyways? Normal people sleep in on weekends." He says yawning. You chuckle despite your sullen mood.

"You're up too you know. And Harry and I made up, but then something happened and now we are in a sort-of humongous fight and I don't think he is ever going to talk to me again." You state looking back into the fire.

You could almost feel Ron's curiosity without him saying anything, so you continue.

"It is a long story Ron, and I have no idea how you will react so I don't think I should really dive into it." You say solemnly.

"Why not? Seems to me you need someone to talk to, and everyone else is asleep. I promise I will keep an open mind, no matter what it is. You're my friend Lanae." He says smiling. You shrug ignoring the big warning signs in neon lights screaming not to tell him.

"I guess I will start by explaining why I have hated Draco Malfoy since the moment I saw him back on the train." Ron opens his mouth to speak, but shuts it allowing you to continue.

"My mother had home-schooled me since last year, but now I am here because my mother was murdered by none other then Lucius Malfoy." You ignore Ron's obvious shock and go on. "And you have to keep this a secret because I am not supposed to be telling anyone anyways. Now I was so angry that I didn't give Draco a chance. I considered him scum just like his father, but what I did was wrong." You say.

Ron looks confused and goes, "Why was it so wrong? I mean we all know Draco is scum."

"He may be, but he is scum for other reasons, not just because his father is. I should not have judged so quickly. I should have waited a little longer." You say quietly.

"Okay. So I get that you should not judge other people by whom they are related to but what does that have to do with you and Harry?" he asks.

"It has everything to do with it. You see I am related to someone who will definitely cause people to judge me too quickly." You say slowly.

"So you are related to someone bad? And Harry found out and now he hates you? Is Bellatrix your aunt or something?" he asks trying to make a joke. Of course he had no idea how close he was. But you nod in agreement, "Something like that."

"That doesn't sound like Harry. You have been our friend for over a month now, you are nice and funny."

"You don't get it. Who is the one person Harry hates the most? Hell, who is the one person everyone hates the most? Voldemort, Ron. Voldemort is my father. And Harry just found out." You say.

Ron's eyes open wide. He looked scared for a second, and then angry, and then sad. Before he could say a word you add, "Ron I can understand if you react like Harry and leave me for the birds, but just listen a little bit more. I really like Harry. A lot. My father had no idea I was even here until recently, and furthermore I have only ever met him once! The reason I didn't talk to Harry or anyone for that matter for the last two weeks was because I didn't want Harry to fall for me like I was falling for him. I knew it wouldn't be fair to him. I didn't want to hurt him. And then I talked to you yesterday and I talked to Harry trying to explain the whole Draco fiasco but then I got caught up in my feelings forgetting that I was trying to stay away from Harry in the first place because I am Voldemort's daughter for goodness sake, and I couldn't even fathom the amount of cans of worms this was going to open. And now well here I am rolling in the bed I so lovingly made all for myself." You say taking a deep breath. You honestly didn't think you had made any sense, but Ron was looking at you calmly now, and he wasn't making a quick get-a-way just yet either.

"I don't know what to say. I mean to tell you the truth I don't see how you could be his daughter. It makes no sense how you could come from him. I mean unless your planning to join his forces in the future. You aren't are you?" Ron asks making an awkward smile.

"No Ron. I am definitely not. I hate my so-called dad as much as the rest of the wizarding world. But none of that matters because Harry won't listen to me. He hates me."

"He can't hate you Lanae. He is probably just confused and scared." Ron says.

"I guess, but…" your voice trails off as the portrait door opens and in steps Harry.


	13. Finding a Distraction

Harry looked like he had been crying. His eyes were puffy and red. You didn't notice this until he looked up to see Ron and you sitting together on the couch. He grunts and walks behind the couch. You were about to say something, though you had no idea what, when Ron spoke up instead.

"Harry, wait. I think you should hear her out." Harry stops and turns around sharply. He looks directly at Ron, not even glancing at you.

"No Ron, I do not think I should hear her out. I do not know what she told you, but it doesn't change anything. She stabbed me in the back. I trusted her, which was a very stupid move on my part and now I feel like the world's because git. Nothing she says will change that. She is and will always be her father's daughter."

A sharp prickle of tears stings your eyes. You were not going to let him make you cry. If he wanted to judge you on something that wasn't even your fault then he was right he was a git. You direct your attention back to Ron.

"Ron, do not even try to reason with him, obviously he is right. He is being stupid. And let's not forget ignorant. And above all else, just plain mean. So he can go off thinking that I am some hag from hell and I can move on with my life and get over him, as he has so easily gotten over me." You say standing up. And without another look at Harry, or his reaction you walk out of the portrait door, slamming it behind you.

"Hey watch it with the slamming! This is a delicate frame you know." The fat lady shouts at you as you stomp off into the hallway. Now that the sun was up the halls were less scary. You could easily make your way down and around to the great hall. Not all too surprisingly though you were the only one there, excluding the ghosts of course. Sighing you sit at a table and rest your head. Too bad you couldn't rest your mind too. You sat there for maybe a grand total of twenty minutes, trying your hardest to fall asleep, but nothing. Angrily you stand up and walk back out into the hallways. Might as well get some exercise if you are going to have to be awake. Harry had made you so livid. Sure you hadn't told him the truth right away, but for obvious reasons. Look how he was acting now, and that was after knowing you for a while. You groan in frustration and kick the wall nearest to you. That was when you realized where you were. The wall that held the room of requirement. Maybe it could hold someplace you could get your mind off of all this crap. You walk in front of it three times not really having any idea how it works and then the door appeared. With a sigh of relief you open it.

You step inside a very furnished looking bedroom, equipped with a large four-poster bed and dresser. Not exactly distracting material. You were thinking more of a gym or a pool. Not the bedroom out of a home furnishings catalog. You walk in and shut the door behind you. The soft mattress felt so nice underneath your hand. Why couldn't you get beds like this up in the dorms? The sound of glass shattering made you jump. You turn and face the shadowed corner of the room. The only place anyone could be.

"Whose there?" you shout pulling out your wand, not in the mood to have to deal with any more bullshit. A second later Draco steps out from the shadows.

"Great, I ask for a distraction and I get you and a large bed. Boy does life think it is a comedian." I say angrily shoving my wand back in my pocket.

He just stands there awkwardly for a second, not at all like his usual self.

"Hello, Earth to Draco? What are you doing here?" That seems to wake him up.

"I was here first Iverson. Go cuddle up to Potter or something." He snaps walking closer to you. And that was when you realized he had no shirt on. And you had to admit he looked good. F my life, you think looking back up at his face.

"You know I wouldn't be here if things had gone well." You say shortly taking a seat on the bed.

"So Potter is still angry at you for lying to him. What a concept."

"Look, I do not need any more shit from you okay? How bout you leave me alone." You say angrily, glaring at him

"Fat chance. Besides I like this room. It is peaceful; you're the one who barged in on me, bringing your whole pity party with you." He replies crossing his arms in front of his all-too incredibly hot looking chest. You slowly look him up and down. His faded blue jeans were hanging loosely on his hips, low enough to entice any girl's imagination. You shake your head. What the hell? He just needs to disappear. And yet you couldn't seem to take your eyes off of him. You had asked for a distraction hadn't you? So much for thinking logically.

And without another thought, you slide off the bed and walk towards him. He looks completely surprised at your advance.

"I am going to really regret this later." You mutter bringing your hand up and around his neck. You notice the frown that played on his face a second before he smirked. What was that about? But then again you didn't care. Looking into his piercing blue eyes you allow yourself to get lost in them, and then pull his head down and kiss him.

He kisses you back, roughly. You are surprised at how much his kisses are like Harry's. His lips even move the same way, feeling just as good. This was not having the desired effect considering you were trying to get Harry out of your head. His hands uncross and find themselves lightly placed on your hips. You were a lot less careful with your hands, letting them travel all down his back and even to his chest. He pushes you away lightly and says rather sarcastically, "Glad you came to your senses and chose me. Didn't take you too long to get over Potter though. Not that I am complaining." Of course you knew you shouldn't be doing this. It wasn't right and was going to do absolutely nothing good in the long run. Especially when Harry found out, but then again he probably won't even care. He then leans down and kisses you passionately, sending a bunch of shivers straight down your spine.

"Don't flatter yourself. You are currently just the best distraction, and nothing else." You mutter pulling away. He smiles an awkward smile and pushes you over to the bed. You fall back as he gets on top of you. "Let's hope I stay the best distraction." He says and kisses you again. His kisses were almost violent, but yet still full of passion. He pulled your hair softly and tugged at your shirt. It was like he had been waiting for this for a long time, which in essence he had. But it just felt more then what you thought it would be. You continue to kiss and kiss.

In the middle of one of the more passionate kisses his hand slides under your shirt and caresses your stomach. It tickles you causing you to giggle and remember Harry. Again. And this time you hesitate. You place your hand on top of Draco's and pull away.

"Lanae come on." He says softly into your ear, which you had to admit sent another set of shivers down your body. But it didn't give you enough reason to continue on with this escapade.

"This isn't working. I can't do this anymore." You say sitting up pushing his hand off you.

"What do you mean?" he asks pushing you back down on the bed.

"Exactly what I said. I can't do this anymore Draco." You watched as he flinched at his name. Odd. "I am still thinking about Harry is what I really mean." You add sadly.

"So you still want Harry then? Even though he doesn't trust you, and will probably never speak to you again?" he asks intently curious.

"Not that it is any of your business, but yes Draco. I am more then just my dad's daughter. And I fell for him, and really do care for him, whether he believes me or not." You say looking directly into his eyes, "Now please get off of me before I have to hurt you."

"I just do not get you. You have his blood throbbing in your veins, and yet you aren't evil. You're resisting me right now because of some boy who doesn't care about you anymore. And you seem okay with that. It doesn't make sense." He says, obviously frustrated as he gets off of you.

"Life doesn't make sense sweetheart." You say with a sad chuckle. You hop off the bed and head for the door. You pause though and turn around, seeing Draco still looking at you. You run over to him and kiss him lightly on the cheek.

"Thank you. You have been uncharacteristically understanding, and nice even. Not really the normal Draco Malfoy. So just thanks." You then turn around and head out the door.


	14. Shock and Awe

Hurriedly you make your way back to the common room. You had this insane urge to take a shower and go to sleep. And if that meant you had to take some sleeping pills then so be it. You turn down a hallway and crash head on with another person, falling to the ground.

"Watch where you're going!" the other person growls getting up. But you were stunned into silence, because there in front of you was Draco. And he was wearing black slacks with a button down white top. He looked good, just like he did moments ago. The only problem being you had left Draco in the room of requirement wearing only a pair of jeans.

"God Lanae, what is your issue? Here, get up." Draco says offering his hand.

You take it and get up slowly, still looking at him oddly.

"Um, how did you change so fast?"

He looks at you oddly now. It was a sensible question; why was he looking at you that way?

"Lanae what are you talking about?" he asks obviously annoyed.

"You know exactly what I am talking about. I mean we just spent the last hour together and you act as if nothing happened. Not that I will mind your ignorance in the future, but right now it's not cool." You say getting annoyed yourself.

He stares at you, his mouth slightly open. You didn't like that look. Like you were somehow crazy.

"I was back in the Slytherin common room Lanae. I have been there ever since you ran off to go try and talk sense into Potter." He says.

"That's impossible." You mutter.

"No. It isn't. Are you okay?" he asks, suddenly sounding a tad worried.

"I don't know. You see, I was with you. In the room of requirement, together. We were…" you were about to tell him exactly how all together you really were but thought better of it, "talking. How could you be in two places at once?"

"I couldn't be."

You had no idea what you were going to find back in the room of requirement but you knew you had to go check it out. You turn around and head back the way you had come. Draco follows you closely.

"You don't think your dad did something to you?" Draco asks, again sounding concerned.

"Or maybe your cruciartus curse did." You say angrily, ignoring the sympathetic sound to his voice. If you were going insane, you were totally going to blame him. Draco shuts up after that and just follows you.

The wall was blank, just as it was before. You walk in front of it three times; the door appears. You stand there for a second just looking at it. Were you losing it? Had you just blacked out and dreamed the last hour? Though why the hell you would dream about Draco was beyond your recollection.

"I still do not entirely understand what is going on." Draco mumbles looking at the door with you.

"You were in there with me. You were nice. And different." You say slowly.

Before either of you say another word the door opens, and out steps Harry. He stops moving when he realizes you and Draco are standing there in front of him. He was wearing a pair of jeans, that looked an awfully lot like the ones you had seen on Draco. He did have a shirt on however, a black one.

"Harry what are you doing here? In there? What is going on?" you ask. Slowly pieces started coming together. The glass breaking. You hadn't thought much about it when it had happened, but what if it was a potions bottle. And that Draco was awfully different, he wasn't forceful. And didn't bring up what had happened last night in the forest at all. In a matter of seconds you realized what Harry had done. And you gasp. You look back and forth between Harry and Draco.

"What did you do!" you shout, more as a statement then a question, fixing your gaze back on Harry. He looks at you sheepishly.

"Well the girl asked you a question. Answer her." Draco says, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Lanae I need to talk to you, to explain things. This is not what it looks like." Harry says quickly, giving you a pleading look. What happened to the angry pissed off Harry you think. Oh yeah he went behind your back and pretended to be someone he is not!

"Well then you better start explaining, because from where I am standing this looks pretty bad."

"Yes yes, do start explaining." Draco says comically. He was getting a kick out of this awkward situation. You break your gaze from Harry to glare at Draco.

"And you need to leave. Now. You know I still owe you one from earlier, so do not push me." You comment angrily.

He raises his hands in surrender, smirking slightly.

"Okay okay, don't get your panties in a bunch. I'm going. Just remember I'll be here, waiting." He says giving you a wink before turning around and leaving Harry and you alone.

"Waiting?" Harry asks raising an eyebrow.

"Do not try and change the subject. Explain what you were doing in there. Because at this point, I do not know what to think." You shout pushing him back into the room of requirement and slamming the door behind you. The room was just the same, the four-poster bed and dresser exactly as you remembered them. Harry crossed the floor and took a seat on the bed. You take a comfortable stance in front of him, looking down at his face.

He stares at the ground as he begins talking, not looking at you at all.

"Ron told me what you said to him. I still didn't believe you, but I was curious enough to think of a test of sorts. So I snuck into the potions closet and stole a vile of pollyjuice potion. I went to this room to make the transformation, and had planned on finding you afterwards, but you came in during the middle of it. So then I pretended to be Malfoy, and question you at the same time. And well you know the rest."

"So did I pass?" you ask placing your hands on your hips.

"Did you what?" he asks finally looking up at you, obviously confused.

"Did I pass your so-called test?" you say more slowly.

He looks back towards the ground. "Yeah. I guess. I did trick you, but it still sucked that you kissed Draco, well me, but me as Draco."

"I get it Harry. I messed up, again. But what else to expect from Voldemort's daughter right?" You begin to pace in front of him. "I understood your frustration. The betrayal and all that. Mind you I was just about to tell you everything too when Draco blurted it all out. And maybe you also forgot the two weeks I made sure you and I stayed away from each other. I knew you deserved better. Better then Voldemort's daughter. I didn't mean to get feelings for you. This wasn't supposed to happen. And even though I am incredibly relieved that I did not just sit here and make out with Draco for an hour, I do not know what good any of this did because you still are not going to trust me. Though it is apparent you are not as innocent as everyone makes you out to be. I had no idea pretending to be Draco was on a list of things you wanted to do. And furthermore,"

"Lanae. Shut up."

You stop pacing and turn around to glare at him. Only to be startled by the fact he was standing only inches from you. You opened your mouth to say something, but found it difficult as Harry's lip crash into your own.

After a few seconds of intense kissing you push him away slightly. What the hell?

"I am getting whiplash from your mood swings Harry. What do you want from me?" you ask defeated, going over to take a seat on the bed. Harry sits next to you and grabs your hand.

"I am sorry for jumping to conclusions. I am sorry for what I said back in the common room. And I am sorry for pretending to be Draco. You are not your father."

"Thanks for finally noticing." You say sadly.

"Lay with me Lanae. Forgive me." Harry says climbing more onto the bed. You look at him, lying there. You couldn't help but smile slightly. You join him and rest your head next to his.

"So what does this mean?" you ask as your fingers entwine.

"Will you do me the honors of being my girlfriend, and giving the whole dating thing a try, despite all the obstacles that will come up because of it?" Harry asks staring into your eyes.

"Duh." You say chuckling, as you lean in and kiss him.


	15. Off the Market

Your eyes part slightly, still heavy from sleep. Sleep? When had you fallen asleep? You slowly became aware of a hand wrapped around you lazily. Shifting your weight you turn over to see Harry sleeping peacefully very very close to you. You couldn't help but smile. He looked so cute. Your gaze shifted to the clock on the wall where it read 730.

730? But it was like 8 the last time you had checked. That means it is practically dinner time already, and you slept through the entire day!

"Harry hun, wake up. We need to go eat something." You say nudging him.

"Lanae? What?" Harry asks groggily.

"We slept the day away boyfriend."

Harry smiles at you, and leans in to give you a kiss.

"That was the best sleep I have had in awhile."

"Me too." You admit climbing off the bed, "In fact I don't even remember falling asleep."

He chuckles rolling off the bed. You follow his lead. Standing up you run your fingers through your hair hoping you didn't look too awful. You catch Harry watching you.

"What?" you ask innocently.

"You look fine. Besides I feel like you've been through a lot in the last 24 hours, so you're allowed a little reprieve."

"Thanks a lot!" you shout pushing him away as he approaches you. He just smiles and laughs. You roll your eyes. "Fine, I'll go take a shower, but lets eat first okay? I am starved."

"I might be a tad embarrassed with you showing up with me looking like that, so do you mind coming in after me?"

"You little turd!" you shout, hitting him. "You said I looked fine!"

He laughs harder now, following you out of the room. You were stomping off in the direction of the great hall.

"You know I am kidding. You look adorable."

He grabs your hand and gives it a light squeeze. You had no doubt you did not look your best. And neither would anyone else after being cursed at, hauled off into the woods, running away from your father, and dealing with boy drama i.e. Harry. But as your stomach growled you knew hunger out weighed any vain thoughts you were having about yourself.

Holding hands you walk into the dining hall. No one really noticed your entrance, and why would they? People were too busy enjoying their food. Just like you were about to do. You find a seat across from Hermione and Ron who seemed to be in the middle of some deep discussion.

"You look like you're having one intense conversation." You say grabbing a couple of chicken strips off a plate.

Both Hermione and Ron looked startled to see you, but a second later relief seemed to wash over their features.

"Where the bloody hell have you two been?" Ron asks, well more shouts at you.

"Whoa. Calm down Ron." Harry chuckles.

"We fell asleep after we became boyfriend and girlfriend!" you squeal, more to Hermione then Ron. She looks ecstatic.

"No WAY!!!! Wait what?? And why do you look like you rolled through a pile of dirty leaves?"

"That seems redundant. Is there such a thing as clean leaves? Only dirty ones right?" Ron interrupts taking a bite out of something on his plate. You find this incredibly funny while Hermione whacks him over the head.

"I will tell you the whole story later Hermione, we have a lot of catching up to do."

"You better."

You began eating, not participating nearly as much in the conversations as everyone else. You took this time to eat and observe. Harry was sitting close to you, using any reason to touch your hand or arm. And every time you held back the urge to giggle uncontrollably. You felt like a little girl again. Neville joined in on the festivities and you couldn't seem to stop smiling. That is until you heard _his_ drawling voice behind you.

"Did you forget what a shower is Iverson?"

You could feel everyone suddenly become tense around you, especially Harry. But you refused to acknowledge him, hoping that Hermione would stop trying to burn a hole in his skull with her eyes and look back at you.

"Hermione would you pass the yogurt?" you ask trying to lighten the mood, even though you knew he still stood behind you. Besides the insult was directed at you, and if you ignored him then so could everyone else.

"You know, if you needed someone to shower with you all you had to do was ask." Draco says, much closer to your ear then you were expecting. You jump, slightly surprised.

"Get away from her." Harry growls, standing up. So much for ignoring him.

"It isn't like you have any claim on her." Draco replies wickedly.

"Actually, Harry and I are dating now. Which means I'm officially off the market. Sorry to burst your bubble." You snap turning around on the bench so you could look up at Draco.

He gave Harry one last glare before turning his gaze down to you.

"Is that so? Well no worries, my bubble is perfectly in tact. Besides it isn't like you're going to last. What would your father think?"

"Go away. Now!"

Both Harry and Ron had shouted together, obviously infuriated by Draco's reference to your dad. Draco raised an eyebrow at you.

"Lanae, Lanae, Lanae, you won't always have these two fellows here to protect you. Just a forewarning."

"Is that a threat?" you ask, standing now, looking Draco in the eye.

"Take it as you want. When you get bored, just let me know." And with that he gives you a wink and strides off down the aisle. You watch him go, mouth slightly agape. What the hell? He was insane. Certifiably insane. Thank God Harry had done that whole stupid test, who knows what would have happened if the real Draco had been inside that room of requirement with you. You would have been in a steaming pile of cow dung is what.

"You okay?" Harry asks you, waking you from your thoughts helping you sit back down.

"Yeah, I mean I am fine. He's just stupid Draco." You mutter.

"Well you and I need to talk, because I am so tired of being out of the loop right about now." Hermione says, looking incredibly appalled.

"Harry I am just going to go talk with her now, and then I am probably going to take some sleeping pills and go to sleep. After I take the shower that I so obviously need apparently. I will see you tomorrow morning bright and early!" you say leaning over to give Harry a kiss on the cheek. He turns his head at the last moment so his lips meet yours. You smile in the kiss, and close your eyes forgetting you were in the middle of a crowded room full of immature teenagers.

"EWWW. Get a room! People are still eating here!" a boy shouts. You pull away and see both Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan smirking at the two of you. You stick out your tongue at them and stand up.

"Bye Harry. And see you later Ron. You too Neville." You say leaving the three boys alone with the other boys to discuss whatever boys discuss. Maybe they could bring Neville up to speed at least a little bit. He was your friend too afterall.

You caught up with Hermione at the end of the table and gave one more glance behind you to see Harry talking animatedly with the guys. You smile slightly until your eyes meet Draco's. He was over standing near the Slytherin table watching you go. He definitely pulled off the creepy vibe pretty damn well. Even if he did look good doing it. Woah. Where the hell had that thought come from? Ew! Just Ew.

"Come on Lanae, I have two scrolls of Charms homework to do and a potion to perfect but I have to hear this story before I can even think about anything else." Hermione grabs your hand and pulls you along side her. You chuckle. This girl has a one-track mind. And you were glad to include her back in your life. "Fine, let's go. But after this I am taking a shower no matter what!"


	16. Bonded

You wake up disoriented. Was that light pouring in through the curtains? You squint slightly at the clock. It was seven, and school didn't start for another two hours. Why are you already awake? Oh right, because you had had a bone-crashing headache in the middle of your REM cycle. It felt like your skull was going to break open. How you can even have headaches while you sleep was beyond you, but you were not about to take the chance of it coming back, so instead you got ready early for school.

Dressed in the uniform you were slowly beginning to like you are lounging on the couch down in the common room. In your lap you held the potions book. You used to like potions back when you learned it with your mom, before Snape and his dictatorship. Lately it wasn't too bad, but you had the feeling that the reprieve was just about over.

"What about 'you have until this morning' did you not understand?" someone behind you growls. What the hell?

"I said it might take me more time, I tried to get it for you, but…"

You look over the couch slowly just in time to see a taller muscular boy punch the other kid in the stomach. Your eyes open wide. Really though, what the hell?

"I do not think you understand. We gave you until this morning. It is not my fault you failed to comply." The taller guy growled once again, taking the smaller guy by the neck and shoving him back just in enough so he trips and falls.

You flinch slightly, not knowing what to do. Help the defenseless boy obviously, but how to help him is what seemed to hold you in place.

"But Luke, I told you it was impossible, how am I supposed to get the answers to McGonagal's test in one day?" the smaller boy cried out trying to shuffle back father from the other guy but hitting a wall.

This is Gryffindor. You were told that Slytherin was the house where the bullies and cheaters reside. Then again, to think Slytherin was the only imperfect house was only a detriment to you, and anyone who thinks the same thing.

"You should have that of that before you came asking for our help." Luke says more calm now, but fixing to raise his foot to kick this kid lying helpless on the ground.

"Stop It!" you shout, before you could help yourself.

The guy named Luke turned around slowly finally to rest on you. You had stood up in your outburst, causing the potions book to fall to the floor. He looked handsome. His hair was regular brown, longer then the normal guy, kind of curling out around his ears. He sent a smile your way, almost as if he was amused by your interruption.

"And you would be?" he asks, coldly, still maintaining that calm look about him.

"Lanae." You say, willing that kid to get up and run away in the distraction you were making for him.

"I have never seen you before." He says almost to himself, taking a step closer to you.

"Yeah, well I am new. You were probably too busy beating defenseless kids up to notice me or anything else for that matter."

His calm demeanor left the moment the words were out of your mouth. Apparently he didn't like being insulted. He took another couple of steps towards you. A couple more and he'd be able to reach out and grab you. You didn't move though. You just wanted the damn kid to get up and get the hell away from here. He wasn't though. He was watching you and this Luke guy. You wanted to scream.

"Now I know you. You're that smart ass sixth year that is dating Potter."

The look on your face must have been one of shock because he smirked. What Gryffindor used surnames with people in their own house? And you are not a smartass!

"Well it isn't a surprise I have never heard of you. You aren't worth mentioning." You say coldly.

He lets out a snarl as he lifts his hand to do God knows what, though probably smack you. You flinch at the sound of the portrait door opening. He lowers his hand, just as quickly as he raised it. Letting out a low snarl.

"God Luke, come on." You hear a guys voice say, almost as if he was annoyed.

Luke looks from the portrait door and back to you, his face back to the serene calm it was a moment before.

"Lucky you." He says to you before turning and heading out the portrait door. You take the opportunity to run over to the kid crumpled on the floor, watching you with some sort of amazement on his face.

"That was a diversion for you kid. You were supposed to get up and run away." You say sharply holding your hand out for the kid.

"Sorry. Thanks though." He says sheepishly.

Before you could reply both the girls and boys dorms seemed to open up and a flood of students came through. Oh yeah, now a whole bunch of people come down. But not when that Luke guy was close to punching the crap out of you or this kid.

"Lanae come on. Let's get to Potions before the guys, I thought of some more questions last night." Hermione exclaims.

"Of course you did," you mumble under your breath. You had told her everything that had happened last night after your shower. She was utterly speechless and thus did not have questions. It only figures she would have them this morning. You grab your potions book off the floor and walk with Hermione to your first class.

"Do you know a guy named Luke? He's in Gryffindor. Kind of tall, brown hair, hazel eyes. Not bad looking." You ask before she could start in on her topic of the day… you.

"Yeah I know him. He's a seventh year. One of the biggest jerks I have met outside of the Slytherin house." She admits.

"No kidding." You mutter.

"So about Harry!" she says happily. You stifle a groan. You loved Hermione, but reliving the last two days again was the last thing you wanted to do. Except for maybe the part Harry asked you to be his girlfriend. That was nice. Okay maybe a little bit more then nice.

"Hermione I see Harry. I will talk to you after class okay? I promise." You say before running across the room and throwing your arms around him.

"It's not every day I get to be tackled by the girl I'm head-over-heals for." Harry chuckles hugging you back.

"I just missed you is all." You say giving him a quick peck on the lips. You take a hold of his hand and pull him to a table near Hermione.

"Sorry Ron, I am taking your usual potion partner." You giggle taking a seat.

"Yeah I am sure you're really sorry." Ron mumbles taking a seat next to Hermione. You smile at her knowing this would please her, and maybe talk about him rather then you later.

"You smell good." Harry whisper.

You turn your head back to look at him. He was very close to your face.

"Thank you." You say, blushing slightly. He grabs your hand and laces his fingers together with yours. You let out a contented sigh. And then someone walks by, knocking into you. You look and see Draco strutting by. "Figures." You mutter.

"Today we will be administering the constrictio potion. Anyone know what it means?" Snape's voice echoes through the classroom silencing everyone.

Hermione's hand was raised, itching towards the ceiling.

"Anyone at all?" Snape asks amused. God he really was a dick. You let go of Harry's hand and raised your own.

"Lanae. Do share." He says crisply.

"It is Latin. It means to bind or draw together."

"Thank you for volunteering." He smirks. Your eyes go wide as you look back at Harry. He didn't look too pleased. Any time you were the main attention in Snape's class something always went incredibly wrong. You headed up towards the front of the classroom. And most of the time you were left with detention. Maybe Snape was starting to miss your company. This caused you to chuckle a little louder then you meant to as you reached Snape.

"Draco come up here please."

Oh. Shit.

You watch as Draco walks up to the front of the classroom and stands next to you, without so much as a glance at you.

"Now Draco, give me a strand of your hair."

Draco pulls out a blonde hair and hands it to Snape who then puts it in a vile full of orange liquid. Your stomach was beginning to twist. Your mom had mentioned this potion before; it was why you knew what the meaning was. But your mind was failing to remember the exact effects of the potion.

"Now drink Lanae." Snape says thrusting the vile into your hand.

"And if I don't?" you ask eyeing the vile warily.

"Then detention. And lots and lots of points from Gryffindor." Snape says, and although you weren't looking at him you could almost feel the smirk plastered on his face. The class groans. Well the Gryffindor part of the class did at least. You were all behind on points and it sucked. Fine, it isn't like it is a love potion. What is the worst that can happen you think as you throw the orange liquid stuff to the back of your throat and swallow. It didn't taste bad par say; it just tasted odd. A mixture of strawberry and cucumber. Weird.

"Happy?" you ask handing the vile back to Snape.

You notice Draco was now looking at you, a slightly amused expression on his face. And that was when you had a really bad feeling that maybe Draco knew exactly what this potion did.

"So," Snape starts now addressing the entire class, "This potion that Lanae took is a binding potion. It binds her to whatever DNA was placed in the potion. Now depending on how strong the constrictio potion is determines the ultimate effects. Lanae please go back to your seat."

You look at Snape strangely. Wasn't he going to show the class, and yourself, what the heck the potion does? He continues to look expectantly at you, waiting for you to go back to your seat. You shrug and make a beeline for Harry. All of a sudden, right before you reach your seat you are thrown backwards and dragged to Draco's feet. You lay there on the floor looking up at two smirking faces. You glare at both of them and stand up. You could hear the class chuckling softly. You were too embarrassed to look at Harry or any of your friends.

"You see, Lanae cannot go farther then ten feet from the person who she is bonded with, and in this case that would mean Draco." Snape announces pleasantly to the class.

"And how long does it last?" someone shouts from the back of the classroom.

"Raise your hand Granger if you want to be called on." Snape snaps back.

You watch as about twenty hands rise into the air.

"Yes, Pansy?"

"How long does it last?" she repeats in that awful whiny voice of hers.

"Well in Lanae's case it will last for 12 hours."

"WHAT!?!" you shout taking a step back from the two of them, "But what about my classes? I can't be stuck around him all day!"

"You are excused of all your normal classes and will accompany Draco to his." Snape explains, obviously enjoying the stress you were showing.

"You can't be serious?! There has got to be an antidote. This is cruel and unusual punishment for crying out loud!"

"You're telling me." Draco says, though you could tell by his face he was extremely entertained.

"All in the name of higher education. Now both of you take a seat, and I would advise you, Lanae, to sit near Draco." Snape adds grinning.

Draco starts heading for his seat, and not wanting to be thrown to the ground at his feet again follow him. You look to Harry, where you were just sitting not ten minutes ago, now wishing you had never raised your hand. He looked angry. You give him a small smile hoping you'll be able to talk to him a little after class and take a seat next to Draco.

First day you have a real boyfriend and you get to spend all your time with his arch nemesis. Lucky you.


	17. Constrictio

Potions ended with no homework. How nice of him you think glaring at the office door Snape disappeared behind. What you wish you could do to that man. Maybe throw him in a pool full of sharks. Or perhaps burn his eyebrows off. A tap on your shoulder makes you jerk back to reality.

"You going to be okay?" Harry asks you quietly. You give him a small smile.

"Of course." You lean in and kiss him. You were about to wrap your arms around his neck when you felt that sudden pull and were thrown back, hitting your shoulder into a table and chair, once again sliding right to Draco's feet at the classroom door.

"Oh right. Forgot to tell you I was leaving." Draco smirks down on you.

Rubbing your shoulder you stand up quickly.

"You're a dick." You say, glaring at him.

"Whatever you say Lanae." He says as he starts walking away. Damn it. You had to follow him lest you be dragged the entire way to divinations. You turn to see where Harry was and smile as he reaches his hand out to you.

"At least I can walk with you to our next class." He says as you two begin to follow Draco.

"Sorry about this by the way. I should have just taken detention." You mutter.

"It's not your fault Snape uses you as his guinea pig. Is your shoulder okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be just fine. I can't say the same for Draco. I'm going to make his life a living hell." You smirk glaring at the blonde headed git walking just under ten feet in front of you.

"He's not worth it, you know that." He gives your hand a tight squeeze.

"Okay. But I am not making any promises."

At the hallway where you were supposed to turn left Draco turns right.

"Whoa, Draco! I know you aren't the smartest tool in the shed but class is this way." You say stopping and pointing down the other hallway. Draco however doesn't stop, and the less then ten feet he had in front of you turned into more then ten feet and your hand was wrenched from Harry's as you flew forward towards him. Growling you stand up for the third time at Draco's feet.

"I am not going to class today Lanae. Say goodbye to your boy toy." He says coldly, as Harry reaches you.

"I'll see you later okay Harry? Apparently Draco is not going to class today."

"Then I'll come with you." Harry says grabbing your hand again. Draco makes a choking sound, but doesn't move.

"It's okay Harry. Go to class. Tell me what I miss later tonight. I promise I will take care of myself." You say before you give Harry a kiss on the cheek.

"Yeah Yeah. Well run along Potter."

Harry gives Draco one final glare before turning around heading towards class.

"Good God Finally. He's like a bloody puppy." Draco mutters starting to walk off again.

"And you're like a bloody maggot." You snap, catching up with him.

"So sentimental."

You don't say anything after that. Why should you? You follow him down to the dungeons. Glad the Slytherin common room wasn't located anywhere cheery. At least that is where you thought you were going. You pause with Draco as he stops in front of a blank wall. He waves his wand in front of it and taps it in three random places. The wall opens into the green and silver common room. You follow him inside taking in your surroundings. You stop in your tracks as you watch a blonde girl, who looked like she was thirteen, run over to Draco and jump into his arms planting kisses all over his face.

And the worst part was that he didn't throw her off like she was some delusional pre-teen; he kissed her back laughing as they got to the couch. Only problem was the couch was too far away. The tug came from your gut and you fell to your knees as you were dragged to him. Your knees felt like they were on fire by the time you got to his feet. You were brought within inches of their sucking face ritual.

"That is just disgusting." You say trying to stand up, ignoring the sharp pain on your knees. You didn't get very far and fall back to the floor.

Draco breaks away for a breath and a single retort, "You're one to talk. Miss PDA." And then he was back under the blonde. You make a disgusted noise as you back father away from them. This was turning into a porno for goodness sake.

"Why are you even here Gryffindor?" the blonde asks angrily glaring at you in between a breathing break. Before you could even come up with a witty comeback she made a gagging noise. "Ewww you have blood all over your knees."

"What?" Draco asks now looking at you as well. You look down at your knees. They were bleeding yes, but you've had worse injuries, and they weren't that bad. It barely even deserved an Ew at all in fact. Stupid blonde whore. When you look back up Draco was off the couch and was coming towards you. He held out his hand. You look at it confused.

"Come on Lanae. Get up." He says bending down grabbing my hands to help you stand.

"God what a baby." The blonde girl snaps stepping out of the way as Draco helped you to the couch. And yes, it was just a little disturbing that you were sitting exactly in the same spot Draco and this stupid chick were totally horizontal on a moment ago.

"Coming from someone who looks like they just graduated middle school? Do you still play with Barbie's by any chance?" you say giving her a smirk.

"You are such a…" she began but you didn't find out what you were because Draco interrupted her.

"I will see you later Christy. Go back to your room."

"But, what about…" she tries again.

"I said go." He snaps. All you hear is a little humph and footsteps. You look around him to see she had disappeared leaving you alone with Draco in the Slytherin common room.

"So are there no statutory rape laws here in England?" you ask smartly, as Draco takes a seat next to you.

"Shut up Lanae." He says taking out his wand. For one second you thought he was going to hurt you. But then he said something and your knees were no longer stinging. You looked down to see the wounds were closed. You look up with astonished eyes.

"What?" he asks placing his wand back inside his robes, "You learn a thing or two when you're a reckless young boy."

"I wasn't exactly surprised about your magical abilities Draco. You are a wizard after all, I'm just surprised you stopped macking on the girl to help me."

"I am not completely evil." He says now smirking slightly. You raise an eyebrow at that. You wanted to laugh but decided against it.

"So Christy huh? She your girlfriend?" you ask as you pull out your own wand to clean your bloody knees.

"Of course not. Why would you think that?" he asks now completely smirking. You roll your eyes and stand up.

"You are what we American's call a horn dog."

"Is that so?" He stands up next to you.

"Yes that is so. Now that you're finished with the blonde are we going to do anything productive today?"

"Yeah, a brunette and a redhead."

You turn and punch him lightly in the arm. "Just ew okay." You say walking away from him.

"You can't go too far Lanae. Remember?"

"Yeah yeah yeah." You say going back to him.

You follow him to the rest of his classes. None of which are your own, though most of which you are learning the same things in. The day wasn't even that bad. Almost no one asked about why you were with Draco everywhere. Whether it was because rumors had already gotten around or no one noticed, you didn't care; you were just glad things had mellowed out a bit since the morning. You did realize that you had yet to see Harry at all since Potions, and you were wondering how he was. In fact your head was in the clouds as you almost walked into a Slytherin guy who had stopped Draco to talk to him.

"Oh geesh I am sorry." You say, expecting some rude retort.

"Don't worry about it." He smiles at you. The guy before you was drop dead gorgeous. Sun-kissed skin. Dark black hair that fell into his eyes. Eyes that were this beautiful shade of brown. Dear God why were you staring at him? You look down blushing slightly, and back away.

"I will talk to you later Draco." The guy says giving you a quick wink before leaving. You couldn't help but stare after him. He was a Slytherin, but boy if you weren't completely and totally taken by Harry you might have just chased after him.

If Draco noticed your misplaced attention he didn't say. Instead he continued walking until he stopped in front of a restroom. You stared at in horror.

"Coming?" he smirks about to step inside. You put your arm up making him stop.

"I am staying right here. Which means Draco, you must find the first stall and go in there you got me??" you say coldly. Draco had been almost pleasant for most of the day, and it wouldn't surprise you for him to suddenly have changed his tactics.

"Whatever you want Lanae." He says smirking, and before you could stop him he goes in. You groan hoping he would just do as you asked. You stood there awkwardly in front of the door, ignoring the two guys that gave you incredulous looks as they came out. It had been awhile since he had gone in, and you were beginning to relax. He wouldn't pull you into the boys… but as that thought hit your head you felt the odd pull sensation and found yourself pushed against the door and flying into the boys restroom where you landed at the other side of the tile floor in front of Draco.

You stand up hurriedly and look around to see two guys using the urinals looking at you with shocked expressions on their faces.

"Oh Dear God." You say quickly turning around and covering your eyes.

"So sorry Lanae. My quill rolled over here so I had to come and get it." He says. You remove one of your fingers so you could see the outlandish smirk spread across his face. You glare at him.

"Are they done yet?" you whine not daring yourself to look anywhere but at the wall.

"Just keep that hand over your eyes and come with me." Draco takes hold of your hand and leads you across the restroom and out the door. The moment it didn't smell like dirty boy grossness you ripped your hand away from him.

"Thank you so much for putting me in the most awkward situation of my life!" you shout glaring him.

"I said it was an accident." He says, obviously lying through his teeth. And he didn't even try to be convincing.

"Oh gosh, now I just feel dirty." You say giving your whole body a shake.

"You could always take a shower." He suggests. Which meant he would have to be at the farthest ten feet from that shower. You do not even give him a glance. You so much wanted to just march away right now.

"Okay okay. No shower. It was just a thought." He must have noticed how your hands were balled into fists. And maybe there was steam coming out of your ears too but you couldn't know for sure on that one.

"Look why don't we go get some dinner. Sound good?" he asks. You look at him now, more calmly and with a slower breathing pattern.

"Fine Malfoy."

"Fine Iverson."

If you thought the restroom incident was awkward, that was almost nothing compared to dinner. You saw Harry and friends on the way in and gave a wave, but that was about it. You had to sit with the Slytherin's, because hell would probably freeze over before Draco sat anywhere near the Gryffindor table. And this meant everyone and there mother noticed you now. And they all had lots to say. Most of the time it was as if you weren't even there. People were just talking to Draco about you. Never to you. This normally would have bothered you, but you had very little energy to care anymore. It was 830 and you only had 45 minutes before you could go back to your normal life, away from all this green and silver drab.

"Come on Lanae. I am done." Draco whispers in your ear as he takes a hold of your arm and lifts you up with him. You shrug his hand off.

"Aren't we taking the red-head home with us? Maybe she could lick your shoes or something." You say, feigning disappointment as you both walk away from the Slytherin table.

"Already did that. Though it wasn't my shoes she licked."

"Oh God Draco. TMI thank you." You say trying to pick up your pace so you could do a little yuck dance out of his line of vision. Then again when has ten feet been out of anyone's line of vision. Unless they're blind.

"Come on, I wanted to talk to you." He says passing you.

"Well then talk to me." You say catching up to him.

"I will. Once we get there." You follow him curiously, what was he talking about? Getting where? And then maybe five minutes later you find yourself standing in front of the room of requirement.

"Why here?" you ask suddenly on guard. Lot's had happened in this room already, and you felt this weird feeling when you were here.

"Because I like it." Was his response. You watched as he paced back and forth in front of it and saw the door swing open. You wondered what he had thought of. You follow him silently inside, against your better judgment. Then again judgment couldn't undo the potion that still had thirty minutes left. And you had to follow him whether you liked it or not.

Inside was a lounge type area. Complete with long couch and an ottoman. It was a smaller room then the last one you had been in.

"So you wanted to talk?" you ask, watching him as he took a seat on the couch.

"Technically, yes. But more so to ask you what happened the last time you were in this room."

You stare at him, still not moving from your standing position.

"Well?" he asks again.

"I have never been in this room before." You reply smirking. And it wasn't a lie. This lounge room was completely foreign to you.

"You know what a meant. The room of requirement. What happened in here?" he asks.

You take a seat on the couch, as far away from him as possible. You didn't have to tell him the truth.

"Harry pretended to be you and we talked." You say simply.

"And that is all?"

"Yes." You nod.

"I know you're lying." He says coolly.

"I'm not."

"Actually you are. You didn't pay much attention to the side effects of this potion did you? You were too busy thinking of ways to kill Snape probably." His eyes glowed as he talked, almost with an invisible fire.

"What are you talking about?"

"The person you are bonded to, in this case me, can tell if you are lying. I have been able to tell all day. And now I am just asking for the truth." Draco says so calmly and rationally you would have thought he was way older then a normal teenager.

"And you want to know what happened in here?" you ask again, trying to decide whether it was really a big deal or not… telling him the truth.

He only nods. He was pretty nice to you today, for the most part. And what is he going to do anyway?

"I kissed him. I kissed Harry, but he was you. So I thought I was kissing you." You say in a rush.

"And that is why you were so shocked to see me in the hallway? Because you thought you left me in here?" he asks calmly still.

"Yes." You agree.

"So you wanted to kiss me. Not Potter." He asks looking pointedly in your eyes.

"I wanted a distraction. And you were the only available thing. But in the end I left anyways. It wasn't working." You admit lowering your eyes. His gaze was doing weird things to your brain. Like giving you the inability to be quiet.

"It doesn't seem very fair that you got to kiss me, and I didn't get to kiss you."

You look back up suddenly, not liking where this was going.

"Life is not fair. We already went over this." You say about to stand up but Draco grabs your wrist keeping you sitting.

"What would it hurt? One kiss? You would be able to see what it was really like." He whispers, as he slowly inches closer to you.

You glare at him. "I already know what it is like. Or did you forget how you pinned me against that wall and kissed me against my will?"

"I was mad. I lost my temper. You of all people should know that." He says still oddly calm.

"You do not know anything about me." You shout getting up and running towards the door. The magic that held you to Draco hit you full force. You literally flew in the air and landed right in Draco's lap.

"Well shit." You say not moving a muscle.

"Look Lanae. All I ask is one kiss. Is it so hard?"

"I saw you make out with two girls today, barely an hour apart! Not to mention I am not going to cheat on my boyfriend thank you very much!" you shout shoving yourself off of him and onto the floor.

"You are just being difficult now." He says angrily grabbing a fistful of your hair and yanking you back up on the couch.

You let out a yelp as you try to pry his fingers off of you. It felt like he was ripping the hair out of your head.

"Why do you make me have to do these things to you?" he asks, sounding genuinely confused. He finally let go of your hair and you are able to lift your head up to look at him.

"Fuck you." You say pulling out your wand. The tip touched right under his neck. He begins to chuckle. And slowly it turned into a roar of laughter.

Not being able to control the fiery anger inside of you, you slap him across the face. And as you heard and felt the slap with your hand across his face you felt it on your own.

"Yet another thing you missed out on. Any pain I feel, you feel too Iverson." He says, finally sounding cruel. This potion should be illegal you think as you scurry to stand up, still having your wand pointed at him.

"I hate you." You say.

"No you don't. Not yet anyways."

And in a movement faster then you expected he stood up, knocked your wand out of your hand, and pressed his lips against yours. His hands slithered around your neck, grasping tightly. You try to push him off you, but he held you firmly in place. You wanted to scream. Instead, as he pulled away to take a breath you brought your fist and connected it to his nose. He let out a wail as he stumbled back from you, holding his bloody nose. You were surprised you didn't feel any pain. You had expected it, wanted it even just to get him off of you. But there was nothing. The potion was over.

"Grow up Draco Malfoy."

With that, you pick up your wand and walk out of the room of requirement, ignoring the growl of pain behind you.


	18. Shared Blood

"And what I do not get is that he was practically gentlemanly almost the entire day and then bang he does that. I mean I almost thought I had been wrong about him Hermione!" you semi-shout at her in the comfort of your own room. As far away from Draco as you could possibly be.

"Yeah. It really does sound strange. He even healed you?" she asks looking just as confused as you felt.

"Yes. And then he kissed me! How am I going to tell Harry? Not even a full day of dating me and already I've kissed another guy! I am the worst girlfriend ever!" you shout falling to your bed.

"You didn't though. I mean he forced himself onto you. Again. That is hardly your fault. Harry will understand." She says calmly, as she rubs your back. You groan.

"I hope he's back by now. I just want to hug him already." You admit sitting up.

"Well go check." She smiles.

You head down to the common room. Half way down the stairs you see Harry and Ron enter from the portrait hole. You picked up speed as you raced down the rest of the stairs and over to him. You practically crash into him, giving him the biggest hug you could manage.

"Whoa there. I've missed you too." Harry whispers into your ear, squeezing you tightly.

You pull away and smile sadly. Which you shouldn't have done because Harry automatically noticed.

"What happened?" he asks pulling you over to the empty couch.

"Well nothing. It wasn't even that bad. Until about fifteen minutes ago." you look down at your hands, playing with your nails. He grabs a hand causing you to look up into his beautiful green eyes.

"What happened?" he asks again, still calm. You let out a sigh. Here goes nothing.

"He kissed me. And I pushed him off of me right away, and then luckily the potion was over and I got to come back here. Oh and I punched him."

Harry looked angry, but not as angry as you were expecting. In fact you were expecting him to want to find Draco right away and put some sort of horrible curse on him. Or maybe that is just what you wanted him to do.

"You okay?" he asks, reaching out to caress your face lightly. You couldn't help but want to rest your face in the palm of his hand.

"Yes." You breathe smiling at him. You wanted to add that he made everything okay but didn't. His touch was like an electric current, and you didn't want him to pull away. How could he make all these butterflies in your stomach?

"Good. You look exhausted though. Get some sleep for me?" he asks lowering his hand.

"Anything for you." You smirk. You lean in and place your lips on his. His hands wrap around your back, pulling you closer to him. Deepening the kiss. You find your hands sliding up his back and running through his hair. Harry's hands began to mimic your own. You got lost in his embrace. His very touch sent shivers to the core of your being. You were so happy despite all that had happened earlier.

"Ahem."

You both pull away slightly and look around. Anyone who was in the common room was staring wide eyed and open mouthed. Oops.

"I think you were scarring some of the 1st years." Ron says sitting down beside Harry.

"I forgot where we were." You admit, feeling your cheeks burn slightly.

"Obviously." Ron agrees, chuckling. Harry continues to look at you, smiling a very knowing smile. You couldn't help but blush all the more. This kind of passion should be illegal.

"Goodnight. Sweet dreams." He says, kissing you lightly on the lips once more. It took a good deal of strength not to throw your arms around him and start all over again. But this time you remembered Ron sitting there with you, along with all the other students residing in the common room. Sighing you give him one last smile.

"You too! Both of you." You say smirking.

A week goes by. You are surprised by how normal your life has become. Just going to school with a normal boyfriend and normal friends seemed to good to be true. Draco even seemed to give you a reprieve from his constant drama. You continued to wake up with pounding headaches though. You didn't tell anyone. It wasn't like it was a life or death thing, just annoying. So when you climbed into bed that Friday night you were content. Content with the calmness that had become your life. But apparently someone else was not.

"Mom, get real. I am not wearing that to the ball." You say trying not to give the rainbow colored dress a dirty look. Your mom had picked it out after all. She was just trying to help.

"But you'll look so pretty in it! Imagine what Hector will think! You'll be the blushing bride." Your mom states matter-of-factly.

"Hector? And I'm going to a ball, not a wedding!" you shout standing up. But as soon as you say this the dress changes into a white gown, and a giant snake suddenly appears in the room.

"This is Hector, Lanae. He is your fiancé."

You look back and forth between your mom and the snake. What was going on? Your mom had lost her marbles. Before you could protest a sharp pain begins to swell in the back of your head. It spreads quickly to the rest of your brain; it felt like your head was on fire. The room around you began to blur. The snake disappeared, and then the dress, and then your mom. You fell to your knees, grabbing your head.

"Wake up!" you scream, finally realizing you were asleep.

Suddenly the headache was gone. But you weren't awake. You were kneeling on the ground in the middle of a plain white room, completely void of anything. What the heck was going on? You think, standing up.

"You are extremely difficult."

The sound of the man's voice makes you jump. You turn around and see a man standing there in a suit and tie. He didn't look half bad for an older guy. He had dark brown hair, and held his hands behind his back. The shape of his eyes looked so much like yours. What was he doing in your head anyways? It wasn't like you knew him. You raise an eyebrow at him.

"You're the one in my dream. So deal with it." You say, trying to figure out how to wake up. At least you didn't have the pounding headache anymore.

"Actually Lanae, this isn't a dream. I am inside your head." He says, in this super creepy voice.

"And you would be?"

"You mean you don't recognize your own father?" The guy smirks. You take a couple steps back.

"You are not my father." You say, not able to help the tremor of fear that ran through your voice.

"I am. Who else could be here, inside your head like this? It does pain me that you do not recognize your own flesh and blood."

You glare at him. "Don't remind me."

"Aren't you going to ask why I am here?"

You pause to stare at him a moment. He looked like a normal guy in this white room in your head. Yet you could feel that a very present evil was here with you. A very powerful evil.

"I figured you'd tell me eventually." You say, crossing your arms in front of your chest. You were not about to just lie down and have him walk all over you. He was in your head after all, which, when you thought about it, scared the living crap out of you.

"I will admit you did a pretty decent job blocking me out. This entire week I have been trying to get inside your head."

"You mean you caused the headaches!" you shout. You had barely gotten a decent night's rest because of him. And just for that you wanted to throw something heavy at him.

"If you would not have resisted then it would have been painless. It is hardly my fault you are so difficult."

"I am a teenager. I am supposed to be difficult. It's part of the job description." Though you knew you had done no such thing. You didn't even know how to block someone out of your head.

"It also seems you like to frolic with Harry Potter."

Your blood runs cold. How did he know?

"But like you said, you're supposed to be difficult. Only thing is I need you to stop playing around and become what you're supposed to be." He continues.

"You have not been apart of my life for almost 17 years; I am not going to become AYTHING you want me to be." You spit out. You were furious. Here he comes, in your head, telling you what to _become. _Like he has some say in your life. Dickhead.

"It wasn't a request. You may not have turned out the way I planned, and you may not have the power that I thought you would have, but you are still an asset. My asset. Do not think for a second you will live if you defy me." He says in a tone more terrifying then you could have imagined. At this the spell he had on his appearance broke, and the scary snake-like creature was back, red eyes and all.

"Seems to me you can't control all your powers when you get angry." You state, trying to not let your fear show.

"Harry Potter will die. And you will die with him if you stand against me. If I were you I would start befriending people of better distinction and better blood."

"Like Draco Malfoy?"

"Like Draco Malfoy." He repeats.

"Well I'll have to think about it." You say mockingly.

"You will. I will be watching you." He says taking a couple steps forward so he was in touching distance of you. You stood your ground and didn't move. You were going to show him as much courage as possible.

"Way to be creepy daddy-o."

"You cannot escape your fate." He says grabbing your wrist. You scream in pain as the place where he holds your wrist feels like sharp knives cutting you over and over. Finally he lets go and you look down. There, red and slightly swollen, was the dark mark. On your bloody wrist.

"What have you done?" you whisper, completely shocked.

"You will obey me. Whether you want to or not. I can guarantee it." He says coldly. You stare at him, trying not to let the tears that were welling up in your eyes flow out. "Don't be like your mother." He adds, sounding a little less harsh.

Everything up until then had scared you, and even hurt you. Had made you feel completely inferior. But when he brought up your mom, you felt a tiny bomb go off inside you.

"Never. Mention. My mother. Again." You say very slowly. The amused expression on his face stayed there for a full second before his entire body explodes. Blood and organs fly everywhere. Pieces of skin stay sticking to the walls. You don't even flinch. You look down at your hands and watch as the scarlet droplets slowly make a puddle on the floor beneath your feet. You could feel the hate pulse through your entire body as you take deep and heavy breaths. The walls, once white as snow, were splotched and dripping with red. His blood; blood that you share. You begin to shake uncontrollably. Without realizing it, the tears that you had kept hidden were pouring down your face, mixing with the blood that already covered you.

You had wanted him dead. You had wanted him to explode. And he had. Of course you knew it was just here, in your head. He was probably fine, but for that instant you felt powerful. You also felt out of control. Still shaking you crumple to the floor. You had wanted to be normal so badly. With one final sob you wake up.

Your eyes scan the darkness. It was only you and your three roommates. They were still asleep. You sit up, trying to get used to the dark. Blinking back tears you look down at your wrist praying that everything that had happened in your head was indeed just a really bad dream. You let out a quiet cry of horror. There was the dark mark on your left wrist.


	19. The Plan

Remain calm. That's all you could do. Well no, that isn't entirely true. You could take your wand and burn it off your skin. Or maybe find a knife and just cut it off. But both of those ideas were stupid because, knowing your father, the mark would just grow back along with any new skin. So now one question remained: what are you going to do?

You climb out of bed. It was pointless trying to get anymore sleep. You walk out the door and down to the common room. It was calm and peaceful, the dying fire crackling every now and then. You fall to the couch. It was early morning, maybe 5, and you doubt people were going to start coming down anytime soon. Especially on a weekend. Sighing you try to remember something happy. Something to get your mind off of what had just happened. And nothing was coming to you. All you could see when you closed your eyes was Voldemort's face. A loud slam sounds throughout the room.

Your eyes fly open and look around. You watch as Harry makes his way down the stairs. Why was he awake? He was the last person you wanted to see right now. What was he going to think when he saw? That you had finally succumbed to the dark side? He was going to hate you all over again. As stealthily as possible you slide off the couch on all fours and crawl around to the back where Harry wouldn't see you. Slowly, after making sure Harry had taken a seat on the couch and had his back to you, you make your way towards the girl's staircase hoping you were quiet enough.

"Lanae?"

You freeze. You glare at the stairs only two feet in front of you. So close yet so far.

"Lanae what are you doing?" Harry asks sounding thoroughly amused.

Think fast you tell yourself as you hop up quickly placing your hands behind your back. But you couldn't think of a single thing to say, besides the obvious, that you were trying to avoid him. Harry's eager face dissolved into worry. Did you look that miserable?

"Lanae what is going on?" he asks standing up and coming over to you. Again you say nothing, afraid the moment you spoke everything would come pouring out. He reaches out to touch you causing you to flinch.

"Why are you awake? Any normal person would be asleep right now." You say coldly, taking a slight step back. Whether it was what you said or how you said it he looked hurt.

"You're awake." He states.

"I have and never will be normal Harry." You turn quickly hoping to catch him off guard and leave him standing there, but his reflexes were fast and he grabbed your wrist. Your left wrist. Damn his seeker abilities.

"Tell me what has gotten you so upset." He says ignoring your attempts to free your wrist from his grasp.

"It's none of your business."

"Actually you're kind of my girlfriend and so you are a big part of my business." He argues pulling you closer to him. You struggle, not wanting him so close to you. He deserved so much better then you. With one final tug you thought you were free, and then found his arms around your entire body hugging you tightly.

"It doesn't matter what it is. I care too much for you to allow whatever it is to eat you up inside." He whispers in your ear. You stop struggling and collapse in his arms, bawling. Your sobs were ridiculous and would have embarrassed you if you were thinking properly, but you weren't. You were just thinking about how much you hated yourself. He ushered you back over to the couch making you take a seat. He sat down next to you, still holding you tightly.

"Explain Lanae." He says softly, giving you a sad smile. You didn't watch his expression as you laid your wrist across his lap. You continued to look down at the floor, expecting him to push you away and run off screaming.

"This doesn't explain anything. What happened?" he asks. You look up into his eyes. He didn't look angry. Incredibly worried, and slightly curious maybe but not angry.

"You're not angry?" I ask hesitantly.

"I will be if you don't start explaining. Now." He growls.

Before you could stop yourself a short summarized version of what happened came spilling out of your mouth.

"While I was sleeping my dad somehow got in my head. He explained to me that I was difficult, wasn't all I was supposed to be, and that he wanted me to make up for that by becoming part of his coalition for world domination. He then stated that if I stood by you I would die, and that I should make better friends like Draco Malfoy. Then he grabbed my wrist, burned the mark into my skin, threatened me that I would obey him and that he'd be watching me. And then he made some wisecrack about my mom so I blew him up. Then I woke up and here was the mark burned into my skin."

"You calling him dad is very disconcerting Lanae."

"You're telling me." You say, looking back down to your wrist. You feel a finger under your chin lift your head up. Harry leans in and kisses you.

"That was for thinking you'd scare me off." He smiles pulling away. You blush slightly, feeling embarrassed by the whole scene that had taken place moments ago. You had acted like a five year old. Lucky he liked you so much.

"Now, Voldemort is not going to stop unless he thinks you have succumbed to his demands. And dating me publicly is probably not the best way to show your loyalty." He chuckles.

"What do you mean?? I am not loyal to him. And I love dating you. I am not about to do what he says! I can't believe you'd even suggest that!" you shout, shocked at his statement.

"I am more worried about him showing up in your sleep at night and hurting you. And I said dating publicly. What if we pretend to break up and go back to being just friends? That way any spies will tell him what he wants to hear and be none the wiser about it."

"Pretend?" you ask, not entirely sure where he was going with this.

"If we break up in front of people, it will be assumed we are over. You can then pretend to befriend people like Malfoy,"

"But!" you go to interrupt but he silences you with a finger to your lips.

"I said pretend. And just enough so Voldemort lets you be. You and I will just have to keep our relationship a secret from the rest of the world." He finishes.

"Are you crazy??"

"For you." He smirks. You smack his shoulder. You were being serious.

"Come on Harry. How would this even work? People would expect me to date or start to like someone else if we break up. Or be mad enough at you that I go on the rebound. Same with you! It's the way drama happens. And then when would we actually be able to be together? Since we couldn't do it in any public setting."

"It will work. If you have to date you have to date. I trust you. Though I do ask you abstain from doing the whole rebound thing... that would suck. And it will work." He repeats.

You stare at him. This plan of his was insane, but you had a feeling he wasn't going to back down. He wanted to protect you as much as you wanted to protect him.

"Fine. How are we going to break up?" you ask.

__________________

You sat at the Gryffindor table eating silently next to Harry. You had the black mark on your wrist covered magically, with the help of Hermione that is. She sat in front of you, waiting anxiously for the debacle that would soon ensue. Only Ron and Hermione knew about the plan. You fidget slightly waiting for Harry to start. You had practiced it throughout the entire day, waiting for dinner to astound everyone with the best break-up scene ever. At least that was what Ron had dubbed it. You on the other hand were apprehensive. Would people believe it? There was only one way to find out.

"Lanae we need to talk." Harry begins, putting his fork down.

"Okay. Shoot." You say nonchalantly.

"I don't think you want to do this here."

"Why not?" Again sounding completely oblivious to his hard voice.

"Because, I think we should break-up." He says matter-of-factly,

"What? Why?" you ask raising your voice a little louder. You had to keep yourself from grinning as you noticed at least half the table was watching you now.

"We aren't working Lanae." He states plainly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Way to expand your thoughts Harry. Now seriously what's going on?" you ask touching his arm gently.

"Nothing is going on! That is the point. I have been dating you for what? A little over a week now, and I feel nothing. Sure kissing you is great, but come on you can't tell me you feel anything?"

"Of course I feel something! I wouldn't be your girlfriend if I didn't feel something. What is this really about? You aren't making any sense. Did something happen?" You whisper, pretending like you didn't like the attention Harry was dragging your way.

"Yes Lanae. I had an epiphany that I am wasting my time being in a relationship with you." He yells coldly. The great hall grows quiet at the sound of his voice. You look around slowly, realizing almost everyone was watching.

"Come on, don't say that. Just quiet down and we can discuss this later." You say, trying to talk sense into him. He stands up, and looks down on you.

"I am going to talk about it now. You're a great girl. Sure. But you aren't for me. It is pointless and honestly I am doing you a favor. Why prolong the inevitable? We were better as friends. Sorry to be the one to point out the obvious." The silence was deafening. You could have heard a pin drop. Even the professors on duty remained silent.

"Thank you for making your opinion about me clear for the entire school." You say angrily, standing up.

"No problem." He replies indifferently sitting back down.

"Screw you Harry Potter." You say taking your drink and pouring it all over his head. You throw the cup to the ground and walk out of the great hall. As soon as you turned the corner the Hall erupted with voices. You paused outside leaning against the wall taking deep breaths. You had done it. Harry and you were over. Now for the hard part: befriending Draco Malfoy. Ugh.


	20. A House Divided

The next morning was more difficult then you thought it would be. Besides the fact today was the day you had to start being nice to Draco, you also had to remember to be mean to Harry. He had indeed humiliated you yesterday in his break-up speech.

In the common room girls gave you pats on the back, saying things like "Potter's a jerk," or "You don't need that git." While all the guys seemed to be avoiding any and all contact with you. Great, maybe your whole plan backfired and all the guys think you're a leper now. You chuckle, worst things have happened. Maybe Draco would ignore you too. That would be an excellent stroke of luck.

You sat down at the far end of the Gryffindor table for breakfast. You begin to notice as you slurp down your cereal that all the girls have congregated down at the end of the table with you, while all the guys sat at the opposite end. There was a good five feet between the closest guy and girl. Looking around you notice Harry in the middle of them, laughing and joking around. You jerk your attention back to the girls around you, eating quietly.

This was pathetic. The guys were sitting over there having one hell of a time all the while you girls sat in silence. This was not okay.

"Okay girls, listen up. I am so over letting the guys walk all over us. I am guessing you all are sitting here because none of your guy friends are in the least bit mad at Harry for what happened last night." You say, catching all of their attention. They all seem to nod in agreement.

"It was wrong. And none of the guys think so. I wouldn't want to be dumped in front of everyone like that." A girl you didn't know said. That got a smattering of "me neither" and "that was so wrong" from most of the girls.

"Well I think those boys don't know who they're messing with." Hermione adds, giving me a small smile. They all agree.

"I can't ask you guys to take sides in this whole thing." You admit, even though you knew what the next response would be.

"You don't have to." Another girl chimes up causing you to smile.

"In that case I have a plan. Hermione, do you know a spell that ties knots?" You ask, not being able to hold back your grin. She nods slowly, probably not entirely sure why you were asking.

"While the rest of us remain here, acting just as we have been you need to crawl under the table and…"

"Tie all their shoes together!" Hermione completes your sentence grinning. The girls giggle.

"Exactly."

She gives a small salute before she slid under the table and out of site. You looked around at the girls. They were trying to keep from laughing. You knew this would be classic. Besides, it did kind of miff you that none of the guys thought what Harry had done was wrong. Even Harry had thought it was totally low, but stuck to it anyways. That was the plan after all. However, you had no idea your break up would cause a girl vs. boy vendetta. At least it makes it easier to stay away from Harry you think.

Hermione popped back up on the table about three minutes later with a slight nod to you, and a huge smirk on her face. This was going to be totally awesome.

Now you just had to wait until they tried to leave. You hoped Hermione had done her best to connect each side of the table together. The girls were talking excitedly among each other, giving small glances towards the boys every so often. Gosh it took them forever to eat.

Some of the girls in front of you became silent as they glanced behind you. You were about to turn to see what they were looking at when a smooth voice whispers into your ear.

"A house divided against itself cannot stand."

You let out a cry of laughter accidentally drawing the attention of some of the guys down the table.  
"You have no idea." You say through your laughter. Still chuckling you look over your shoulder and see Draco looking down at you slightly annoyed.

"Did I miss something?" he asks not just you but all the girls. They shrug, but you knew they would have been laughing too if they had heard what he had said.

"Just wait." You say realizing that the entire boys side has stood up. They were all looking over at your side of the table, where the girls sat. Please say that the guys planned to make a grandiose exit together, because you don't think it could get any better. And then Ron opened his mouth.

"Don't worry gals, you'll forgive us eventually. You have to understand that us guys have to stick together."

You could feel the girls next to you start shaking from holding back their laughter. Any moment now.

You watch as they all tried to step over the benches at the same time, only to lose their balance and tumble forward sideways over the bench and onto the ground. The boy's feet were kicking in the air, struggling to figure out what happened.

You all broke out into fits of giggles watching the guys fight to get up. Nothing seemed to be working which just made it harder to stop laughing. People from the other tables couldn't seem to stop laughing either.

"Get it now Draco?" You try to say, clutching your stomach from all the laughter. He looked incredibly amused as he focused his attention back on you.

"You don't take rejection well apparently."

"Like someone else I know," you say, winking at him. Turning from him you look back to the girls. "Thank you ladies. It was a very productive breakfast." You announce, causing another hysterical outbreak. You smile, at last being able to breathe normally and stand up so you could be face to face with Draco. Now was your chance. In all this pandemonium. Make peace with Draco.

"So what was with the Abraham Lincoln quote? Didn't know you had a fetish for American History." You say, smirking.

"Just thought you could relate." Matching you smirk for smirk.

"So do you want to hang out today or something?" you ask without really thinking. Well at least you threw it out there. No beating around the bush with you apparently.

"What?" he asks looking slightly confused.

"You know, hang out? The verb meaning to chill, relax, or have a good time?"

"I know what it means Lanae." He snaps.

"Well then?" you prod.

"So now that Potter publicly humiliates and dumps you you're willing to hang out with me?" he raises an eyebrow.

"Yep. Pretty much."

"I think not." He says coldly.

"Your loss." You say before turning your back to him and walking towards the exit. Halfway there you turn around and see Draco still standing there, eyes on you.

"Let me know if you change your mind." You yell. Smirking you turn back around and look down at the boy you stopped right in front of.

"Glad to help you stick together any day." You say smirking at Ron. You then wave at Harry who was lying next to him and rush out of the great hall chuckling the whole way.

You duck into the room of requirement. Harry and you had planned to meet there after breakfast. Of course you hadn't planned on causing a scene, but hopefully he would still show. You sat on the bed. Waiting.

About five minutes later the door opens and Harry strolls in, looking as cute as ever. You jump off the bed and run to him, throwing your arms around him. He hugs you back, but doesn't say a word.

"Are you upset with me?" you ask pulling away.

"Because of what happened at breakfast? Of course not. If the break-up was real I would have expected some sort of retaliation. And since we're trying to make it as real as possible, you did a fine job." He says leaning in to kiss you.

"You sure? You seem kind of frazzled." You grab his hand and usher him over to the bed.

"I guess I am not used to you talking to Draco of your own free-will." He replies taking a seat.

"Do you want to go to lunch later and tell everyone we were just kidding? Because I am totally for that."

He chuckles and looks up at you. You lean in and kiss him before he could respond.

"You know we can't do that. I am just going to have to man up and deal with it. At least I don't have to try and be pals with him."

You hit him over the head before jumping on the bed next to him. He just laughs and rolls over on top of you. He begins to kiss you all over your face and down your neck. You couldn't help but giggle. And before you know it his hands were on your side tickling you. You squirm and laugh uncontrollably trying to get him off you.

"Stop. I can't. Breathe!" you manage to get out, but to no avail. Suddenly the door to the room opens. Both of your eyes grow wide. You didn't wait to see who it was. Instead you push Harry off of you and onto the floor, praying he would stay out of sight. You two couldn't be seen together, especially not rolling around on a bed. You watch as the door opens up more and Hermione walks in. You breathe a sigh of relief.

"Oh thank God it's you. Harry you can get up, it's just Hermione."

Harry peeks up slowly from the side of the bed.

"You guys are crazy you know that? You should really try to figure out how to lock this." She says closing the door behind her.

"No kidding." Harry mumbles, trying to fix his hair. Which was pointless because it was always messy anyways.

"Lanae, I thought you would like to know that Draco is looking for you. Or was five minutes ago at least."

"Didn't take him long to change his mind," you chuckle, rolling your eyes at her.

"I am going to go use the rest of my Sunday to study. Have fun you two." She says and then leaves.

You turn and face Harry, smiling suggestively. He was totally going to pay for tickling you like that. But you paused because he was frowning slightly.

"I guess you should go find him. Start off your new found friendship." He says walking around the bed to your side.

"But I want to stay here with you." You whine tugging at the front of his shirt.

"Of course you do." He says smirking, "But it would be more advantageous if you go see what Malfoy wants."

"Oooo. Advantageous. Big word."

He ignores your smart remark and pulls you in for a deep kiss. You wanted so badly to stay there and melt in his embrace, but he just had to be all into this plan of his. He pulls away.

"You'll let me know if anything happens between you two right?" he asks, all joking gone from his face.

"Nothing is going to happen between him and I, Harry. **You** are my guy." You state as though it was completely obvious.

"Just promise you'll tell me." He says again holding you close. You wanted to argue, but nodded instead.

"Yes Harry. I promise." You say looking into his deep green eyes.

"Good, now go pull the wool over Malfoy's eyes." Harry says pushing you towards the door. You were out of the doorway when you felt Harry smack your butt. You let out a squeal and turn around, but the door had already shut. You could just imagine Harry laughing on the other side of the wall. He was totally going to get it the next time you saw him.


	21. Tempers and Things

You had no idea where you were supposed to find Draco. He wasn't in the library or the Great Hall. Where does an egotistical Slytherin normally hang out? Probably where all the other egotistical Slytherins hang out you think as you make your way down to the dungeons. You really didn't want to invade their common room, but you had no other places to look for him. Maybe you could just wait till lunch. After all there really is no rush, you think as you turn your back to the dungeons.

"Lanae?" you hear. You turn around expecting Draco, because that is just how your luck usually is, but instead you were facing a guy you do not know. A guy who looked incredibly hot and oddly familiar.

"Do I know you?" you ask, stepping down another step to get a better look at him. And then you realized where you had seen him before. He was that guy that had talked to Draco back when you were bonded to his side for an entire bloody day. He was still just as gorgeous.

"No. You don't. But Draco was looking for you; he's in the common room. Want me to get him?" He asks.

"That would be just swell." You say, slightly disappointed, making a mental note that he was definitely not a conversationalist. That or he was purposefully trying to get away from you. Either way he disappeared back down the steps. Guess you're just supposed to wait here, you think leaning against the railing.

A couple minutes later Draco came up the stairs, smirking wickedly. Oh no.

"I heard you were looking for me." You say coolly, placing your hands on your hips.

"Amazing how word gets around." He says, stopping on the stair that made him eye level with you.

"Sooo?"

"You still want to hang out?" he asks, still smirking.

"Yeah…"

"Then come by the room of requirement at seven." He says, turning to go.

"Woah there buddy," you say reaching out and grabbing his arm making him face back towards you, "I was thinking more of a public setting type hang out. Somewhere you'll actually behave." You needed to makes friend with him, not make it easier for his hormones to take control.

The smirk grows even larger, "I'll be on my best behavior." You watch him head back down to the Slytherin Common room.

Great. What had you gotten yourself into?

It was awkward waiting around the Gryffindor common room. You were trying to finish up a killer essay McGonagal had assigned over the weekend, but almost every guy that passed you would send you these evil glares and make some unintelligible comment. You had thought it was just because of this morning, but you began to notice how none of the girls were even looking at the guys. You had to chuckle to yourself. The guys were all mad because you had single handedly cocked-blocked every single guy in Gryffindor.

"Don't come tonight dressed like that." A voice says in your ear. You jump slightly and whip your head around to see the bully Luke leaning over the back of the couch.

"What?" you ask. Making sure you heard him right.

"I said, Iverson, don't come tonight dressed like that." You give him a slight glare before looking down at your pleated skirt and ruffled white blouse. It was the Hogwarts uniform. You chose to wear it on weekends when you had nothing planned. But what was wrong with it for tonight? It was just Draco. And how did this jerk even know about it?

"And what is wrong with what I am wearing?" you snap.

"You'll stick out like a sore thumb."

You raise an eyebrow, "And what am I supposed to wear then oh wise one?" His amused expression turned cold. You forgot that he didn't like when you talked down to him. Great, now he was probably going to threaten you or something. That is what bullies usually do right?

"I told him talking to you would be pointless. I delivered the message. Do with it what you want." He growls and stomps off.

You roll your eyes. Way to throw a fit, you think looking back down at the parchment in your lap. The words only seem to blend together the more you tried to concentrate. You throw your quill down in a huff. What the hell? Why are you letting what he said get to you? You had no reason to impress anyone, so why would you need to wear anything different?

Yet you found yourself standing in front of your closet a couple minutes later, all thoughts concerning your essay on some far away planet.

You shift through the hanging clothes. You had forgotten you had a lot of this stuff from when you lived in America. You pause at a red cocktail dress. You pull it out and hold it up to your body. You smirk as you look into the mirror. It was a super sexy dress with a black ribbon that tied into a loose bow around the waist, but it had jailbait written all over it. Like you would ever willingly walk around Draco wearing something like this. You place it back in your closet. Instead you decide on a pair of black skinny jeans and an off the shoulder purple top.

You change and look back into the mirror. You looked like you were back in high school. Back when you had to try and fit in with muggles. Pulling your hair back into a low side ponytail you smile sheepishly at your reflection.

The door swings open startling you. You look over your shoulder and see Hermione come in carrying all her books. She stops though when she sees you, her eyes widening.

"Whoa."

You ignore her exclamation and try to tidy up your closet. What were you thinking? It probably looked like you were going on a bloody date for crying out loud. And what if Luke was just setting you up in the first place?

"I look ridiculous don't I?" you ask slamming your closet door.

"Of course not. You usually stick to the uniform is all. I think it is refreshing that you are expanding your fashion sense."

"Hey, I resent that." You remark plopping down on her bed.

"You know what I mean." She chuckles sitting beside you.

"Yeah, well I still feel foolish. And I have to leave, now." You say looking at the clock.

"Not going to Dinner?" she asks.

"I don't know. Maybe this whole hanging out with Draco thing will blow up in my face and I'll see you at dinner shortly."

She laughs as you walk out the door and down to the common room. You ignore the looks you were getting and continued out the portrait door to the room of requirement. Thank goodness you didn't run into Harry because you probably would have given up on this whole escapade and hung out with him. Or tried to at least.

Why do people keep looking at you strangely? Everyone else wears this type of clothing now and then. Maybe it was just because these black pants were pretty tight, as was the shirt. At least you weren't wearing high heels like you had originally planned.

You approach the room of requirement entrance hesitantly. You take a deep breath. Here you go. The door swings open and you walk inside. Whatever you were expecting this was not it.

The music was blaring. It was a room roughly the size of the common room, and it was packed full of people. You navigate your way through, trying not to bump into too many people. You recognized absolutely no one. And that was when you realized that everyone around you was definitely wearing the usual Hogwarts uniform. And most of them were sporting the Green and Silver colors. You wanted to scream.

Slowly people began to notice what you were wearing and stepped out of your way just to laugh and point. Luke was so going to die. You walk up to the bar. Yes, a bar. And take a seat. Most of the people were on the dance floor, not really dancing.

"Welcome newbie." You hear over the loud music. You swivel the chair around to see the girl standing behind the counter wiping down a glass.

"How could you tell?" you mutter glaring once again at the people around you.

"Don't take it too hard. It's tradition. At least they didn't tell you it was a costume party. This girl came dressed as a fish once." She chuckles placing the glass down. "Actually I really like your top."

"Thanks." You say eyeing her silver and green tie. She was being pretty pleasant for a Slytherin. Then again maybe she didn't know you were a Gryffindor.

"So you want anything to drink?"

"Yes please! Can I get an apple martini?"

"Coming right up." She smiles, turning her back to you.

"I see you got the message."

You turn to your right to see Draco lounging on the chair next to you wearing his uniform. You roll your eyes, but find yourself smiling anyways. The girl placed the drink down in front of you.

"It's on me." Draco says, winking at the girl. She nods and heads over to another guy down at the end of the bar.

"So," you begin, taking a sip of your drink, "what is all this?"

"A normal weekend."

You look at him questioningly. "You do this all the time?"

"You didn't actually think we Slytherins stay up in our rooms and study on the weekends now did you?" Draco asks with that stupid smirk still stuck to his face. Talking to this boy was going to majorly increase your patience level.

"You. Study? Please. That thought never crossed my mind. Though I will admit, neither did this." You add looking around again at all the people dancing around with their drinks in hand. You weren't even going to ask about how they got all this alcohol.

"Dance with me." He says, smiling suggestively.

"Um no thanks. I don't dance." You lie.

Before he could argue with you this red headed girl comes up to the two of you. Her blouse was unbuttoned and tied up around her boobs, showing all of her stomach. You couldn't help but roll your eyes.

"Come on baby." She says grabbing Draco's hand. He gives you a wink before following her into the crowd. So much for hanging out with him, not that you were incredibly pained that he left you. You wouldn't have to pretend so much if you could just stay sitting there alone at the bar.

You finish your drink, and decide that you had had enough. Draco was obviously enjoying himself with the three girls that were draped all over him, and you had no more reasons to be wasting your time there. You get up to go and make it about half way to the door when a girl steps in front of you.

"Do I know you?" she asks.

You recognize her right away. It was Christy, that girl Draco had made out with all over the Slytherin couch. The one who looked like she belonged in munchkin land.

"No. Now if you'll excuse me." You mutter trying to get past her but she steps in front of you again.

"You aren't in Slytherin." She states staggering a little. Oh great, she was drunk. Not even an hour into this thing and she was drunk. What a lightweight.

"You're powers of observation must astound quite a lot of people, especially since you look like you're ten."

She gives you an evil glare before her eyes widened.

"Now I know who you are. The Gryffindor bitch that got dumped by Potter! You must feel like shit knowing that even the crappiest of people didn't want you."

You should have just pushed her to the side and walked away. Without saying anything. But then again, you and your big mouth.

"I'll remember that when Draco is making out with me instead of you." Of course you had no intentions of making out with Draco. Ever. But this girl didn't know that. And she started to get really really red.

"Draco is mine! He would never touch a gross thing like you!" she shouts pushing you. Though she kind of stumbles in the process. This was just what you needed. To get into a catfight with one of Draco's girlfriends. Would you ever catch a break?

"You're drunk Christy. Just forget like I was ever here, and go on with your pathetic existence." You say. Sure it might have been mean, but you were so over this.

"I am not drunk! And you are a whore! A dirty whore! Your mother was probably a whore too!" she yells, raising her hand to slap you.

Not a lot of people had been watching the little scene that was happening between the two of you. But the moment you grabbed her wrist, twisted it behind her back and ran her up against the wall, you could feel all the eyes on your back. And you didn't even care.

"I better never hear you talk about my mother again. Do you understand me you fucking little dipshit? Because I swear to whatever Holy Power there is that you will regret that day for the rest of your life." You say so menacingly that you could feel the girl tremble.

"Lanae." You hear softly as you feel a hand on your shoulder. As if waking up from a dream you let the girl go, stepping back. She turns around, looking beyond petrified.

"You're crazy." She says.

"Do you want to test that theory?" you ask, taking a step forward not being able to keep your temper from rising again, just as fast as it had fallen.

"Go to the bathroom Christy. Get yourself cleaned up." You recognized Draco's voice say. She walks away quickly, staring at the floor on her way. You were taking deep breaths as you turn around.

You were right about all the eyes on you. Everyone had stopped dancing, and had witnessed what had taken place. If they had heard what you said you didn't know, the music was still blaring. Their eyes were mixed with fear, anger, pride. It was weird that you could practically sense all those feelings even though your own anger was still enveloping your body. You noticed Luke looking at you, smirking, like he had enjoyed every minute of what he saw. It made your stomach want to heave.

"You okay?" Draco asks you, breaking you out of your thoughts. The mutterings slowly began to grow louder, almost overwhelming the music even. You heard bits and pieces ranging from, "Damn that bitch is crazy," to "Why the hell isn't she in Slytherin?"

"Yeah. I'm just going to go." You say, turning to leave.

Draco grabs your wrist to stop you. "I'll walk you back." he says sounding almost concerned.

You give him a sad smile. "Thanks for inviting me Draco, but you better stay. I know my way." And before he could say another word you rushed out of there, not looking back, and trying to ignore the tingling sensation playing on your wrist.


	22. Volunteer

You slam the door to your room and let out a scream. What happened to you? It was one thing to go ballistic on Voldemort for bringing up your mother; it was another to do it to some poor girl who wouldn't stand a chance against a cabbage patch doll.

Maybe you were crazy; you certainly felt that way at the moment. The whole of Slytherin house, and anyone else who was there would now understand why Harry dumped you. Even though technically he didn't, but now you're worried that maybe he should. You had wanted to break her arm for crying out loud!

You fall onto bed and scream into your pillow, this time muffling the sound of your rage. Your wrist was still tingling from where Draco touched you. Of course it also happened to be where the dark mark was located as well. Either way, it reminded you what you came from. You were not your father, and would have to get a handle on your temper. Maybe you should go tell Dumbledore all that has been happening. If he doesn't already know because you would swear that guy knew everything.

You had to do something. If you stayed in your room and continued to think you would claw your brains out. It was still relatively early so maybe you could catch Dumbledore tonight. You run out of your room and down the stairs only to be grabbed around your waist.

"That was quite a show you put on."

"Let go of me." You growl, pushing him away. You glare up at Luke who was smirking down at you. You never thought someone's smirk could be more annoying then Draco's but you had been so wrong.

"Now, now, no need to lose your temper. Again." He says almost whimsically.

"I have nothing else to say to you." You proceed to walk around him, only to be grabbed around the waist a second time.

"I swear if you don't let me go…"

"You'll what? Pin me to the wall? That's kind of kinky. Or maybe you'll just tell your daddy on me." He laughs, really enjoying your reaction. Which consisted of a look of disgust followed by one of horror. How did he know who your dad was? And why was he bringing him up? The last thing you want is for everyone to find out you're the daughter of the most feared wizard in the whole world. That would so not go over well. But you decide to regain your composure and pretend like it didn't bother you in the least.

"Who knows? Maybe I will tell him. But in the meantime I would prefer it if we pretend not to know each other. It would save you a lot of brain activity from trying to formulate words and such, plus I would no longer have to listen to your drivel," you say brightly your voice high pitched like you were talking to a two year old.

In those few precious seconds that it took for his anger to react to your words you took off out of the common room. You didn't know if he was mad enough to follow you or not so you rush to Dumbledore's office.

You get there out of breath, resting on the gargoyle statue that stood in front of the staircase that you knew led to his office. Now, getting into his office was the next step. You were fairly tempted to try open sesame just for kicks.

Without you saying a word the gargoyle begins to move on its own, showing a concealed staircase. You start taking them two at a time, not caring how or why it opened. You freeze at the top step when you hear two voices arguing.

"I do not need a lecture about the differences between parents and their children."

"And yet here are two students you hold accountable for their parents sins." You could tell that was Dumbledore's voice.

"You know that is not completely true. He is the reason I am here in the first place." The first voice argues. You slowly creep closer to the door. Ignoring the tugging feeling that you were not supposed to hear any of this conversation.

"Lanae."

You freeze. Of course Dumbledore knew you were there. It was naïve of you to think other wise. You push open the door to see Snape glaring at you. Fantastic, like he didn't already have issues with you. Dumbledore, however, was smiling as you approach his desk.

"Did you need to talk about something?" he asks, his eyes practically sparkling.

"Yes sir. And it is pretty important." You say shifting slightly not really comfortable with the fact Snape was still glaring at you.

"Of course it is." Snape growls. You give him an annoyed look. What had you ever done to him? And since you were already in a surly mood you weren't surprised that you snapped back in your least respectful tone.

"Glad you agree with me Professor Snape. You can leave now."

"Just like your mother. Ordering people around like you own them."

"You knew my mother?" you ask, all attitude gone. Maybe you were tired of blowing up at everyone for mentioning your mother, or perhaps the fact Snape knew her completely shocked you. Your response to his accusation was not what he had expected either because he looked genuinely surprised.

"Your mother went to school here with Professor Snape and a lot of your peer's parents." Dumbledore says softly, giving Snape a look you could not define. You look back up at Snape.

"We can finish our discussion later Headmaster. See you in class tomorrow Lanae." He says not really looking at you. And then he was gone.

"Now Lanae what do you have on your mind?" Dumbledore asks indicating to a seat in front of his desk.

You take a seat and launch into everything that has happened. Well the general idea of things, including the conversation with Voldemort, the new addition to your wrist, and Harry's plan to get closer to Draco. And last but not least your unyielding temper.

"Well that was a lot to unload in one sitting. How are you doing in spite of all this?" He asks.

"Well, I think I just have a lot to work on, especially when it come to how I react to things."

"I am glad you discussed this with me. I am sure we will have many more conversations, but for now go get some rest. You look exhausted." He smiles warmly.

You didn't really want to leave. Wasn't he going to help you? Give you some advice at the very least? That was why you had come to him wasn't it? Instead of saying anything that was going on inside your head you thank him and leave.

Well that was pointless, you think as you head back to the Gryffindor tower. At least you had calmed down. And now that Dumbledore mentioned it, you certainly felt tired. Hoping for a peaceful night's sleep you head straight to bed, not even bothering to change.

In the morning you find yourself sitting once again down at the far end of the table surrounded by only girls. You were thankful for their support but it has been two days now. How long is this fight between the boys and the girls of Gryffindor going to last. And just think, your pretend break up was the cause of it all.

You finish up breakfast without a single word to anybody and head off to Potions trying not to think of all the drama you had caused in such a short a period of time. Who knew what the Slytherins were going to say to you after you practically crashed their party last night. And you still didn't know how you were supposed to keep on pretending to hate Harry.

Suddenly someone comes from behind you and pushes you into a dark corner in between a wall and a statue of an eagle.

"What the hell?" you shout jerking your arm out of their grasp.

"Settle down Lanae. It's just me." Harry voice says. You couldn't help but squeal and fling your arms around him. It was dark enough in the corner that you didn't think anyone would be able to see.

"I didn't see you at breakfast." You say, giving him room to breathe again.

Instead of responding like a normal person, with words, he proceeds to smash his lips against yours. His weight pushes you against the wall, while his hands remain at your waist. You were surprised but immediately began kissing him back. Enjoying the electric sparks his lips were shooting down your spine. You felt this over whelming sensation in the pit of your stomach as his mouth opened wider and his tongue starts to caress your own. You let out a soft moan on accident, causing him to break away smirking slightly.

"It's not fair for you to ambush me so early in the morning." You say giving him a small kiss.

"I'll make sure to take that into account." He says smirking even more. He leans down and starts kissing you again, with the same yearning passion. You don't know if you would have stopped if it weren't for the loud footsteps and voices that began to come your way.

"Crap." You mutter trying to remain perfectly still hoping no one would notice the odd shape in the shadows, i.e. Harry and you pressed together like sardines.

"You are so beautiful." He whispers. You look up into his eyes. It wasn't fair that he made you feel this way. Like a gazillion butterflies were about to explode out of your stomach.

"You only say that because I let you make out with me." You suggest, grinning.

"I say it because it's the truth." He was looking at you with such intensity you thought you would melt right there.

"You're not too bad yourself." You whisper back, making him crack into a smile. You chuckle lightly, waiting to see if the sounds of footsteps were gone. It seemed like they were, at least for the moment.

"Come on, we have to get to potions. And do not think you are off the hook about last night, I want to know everything." He says pushing you out of the dark corner. You look back at him, waiting for him to follow you but he doesn't move.

"Fine, but it would be nice if you'd join me this millennia."

He laughs, "We can't walk in together Lanae. Go on ahead. I'll see you in there soon."

You sigh and head off without him. This sucks. You can't even hold your boyfriend's hand and walk with him to class.

Hurriedly you get to class hoping you could snag a seat with Hermione, but unsurprisingly there was either the empty table you usually sat at with Harry available or as luck would have it an empty seat right next to Draco. Trying to pretend like it was an easy decision you take a seat next to Draco.

"What do I owe this pleasure?" he asks.

"Oh you know, just avoiding my ex." You say glancing back as Harry enters the classroom. Why did he make you want to sigh every time you see him? Geesh. Get it together you think facing the front again.

"Can't say I complain. You sure left an impression last night." He adds quietly as Snape approaches the front of the classroom already starting in on today's lecture.

"Not something I am incredibly proud of." You whisper.

"Would you like to share with the class the details of your riveting conversation Miss Iverson?" Snape barks.

"Not really. But thanks for asking." You answer, without thinking.

"Fifteen points for your cheek Iverson, and you volunteered again for today's demonstration." Snape remarks happily.

You groan, hitting your head on the table. You were never going to catch a break with him. Every week this happens. You really need to learn to keep your mouth shut.

"Today we will be brewing Forgetfulness potions. Now there are two types. One will mess with the drinker's short-term memory, for instance, if you wanted someone to forget something that occurred only moments ago. Though no potion is permanent, this one lasts quite a long time, up to three months. However the long-term memory forgetfulness potion lasts only between two to four hours, and the range of memories forgotten can range between six months to two years. Today we will be brewing the latter. Get out your cauldrons and start with the ingredients on the board."

You, along with the rest of the class, get to work. Unlike the rest of the class you were growing more apprehensive with every passing minute. How much were you going to forget? And how were you going to react? You had a bad feeling about this.

"Stop what you are doing. At this point your potion should be a gray color. If it is purple, like Longbottom's here, then you might as well just throw it away." Snape says coldly, waving his wand over Neville's cauldron causing it to disappear. You really wish you could give Snape a taste of his own medicine.

Your potion looked more silver then gray, but you didn't care. You weren't going to have to drink your concoction because it took three days to brew it properly. At least that was a plus. Your brain wouldn't explode with Snape's perfect potion.

"Lanae would you come to the front of the class." Snape says. Time for your star performance. He really was turning you into a diva with all this singling you out.

You walk to the front of the classroom, and turn to face the class, just like the last three times you had "volunteered." You see Harry give you a quick wink before going back to looking apathetic to your existence. It made you smile.

"Here you go. You might feel a little dizzy afterwards, but it will pass." Snape says handing you a vile filled with light blue liquid.

"Wait, what if things go wrong?" you ask, giving the vile a cold look.

"I have an antidote I will administer to you before class ends."

"Here goes nothing. Again." You mutter, throwing the potion to the back of your throat. It didn't taste too bad you think smacking your lips. A second later your vision starts to get really blurry.

"Thanks for mentioning the fact I was going to lose my vision." You say angrily, grabbing a hold of the table trying to keep your balance. You felt like you wanted to vomit. If Snape replied to your comment you didn't hear him. In fact it felt like your head was turning into a cement block. This is so not cool, you think the second before you pass out.


	23. Bye Bye Memory

Your eyes flutter open. You were looking up into a guy's face you had never seen before. He had greasy black hair and a pointy nose. Why did he look so worried? And why were you lying here on the floor? You sit up slowly rubbing your head. Dang you had a horrible headache.

"Lanae, are you okay?" the man asks in a drawling voice.

"Sure." You reply standing all the way up. You look around. You were in a classroom with every single eye on you. Only problem was, this was not your high school, and you knew none of these people.

"Where the hell am I?" you scream pulling out your wand and backing up into a table. The force of your impact knocked over a cauldron on the table that exploded when it hit the ground. You barely even noticed.

Everyone was staring wide-eyed at you like you were some kind of freak, or maybe they just looked scared. You didn't care. You're mom has been dead for all of two weeks and you already got yourself into some deep crap apparently. Had your foster mother done this? You were so going to roast her alive.

"Lanae, you're at Hogwarts." The man says, trying to calm you down.

"Hogwarts? That's impossible. I'm not stupid. That school is located in Europe." You yell now getting angry. Where your dad was. But you didn't tell these people that. Maybe they knew him, and then you'd really be in trouble.

"Can't you just give her the antidote?" a guy asks loudly. You look back at the students and see a guy with messy black hair in the back standing up looking frustrated. He was incredibly handsome. Maybe you could go with him and he could help you figure out why you were there.

"That would be impossible considering the only antidote was knocked all over the floor." The guy replies angrily, "And I do not need any attitude from you Potter. She will be just fine."

Your eyes open wider. Potter? As in the Harry Potter? Who knew the boy who lived would be so freaking hot. But wait a minute, did that mean you really were at Hogwarts. You look down at your clothes. You were sporting a red and gold tie, along with a plaid skirt and white blouse. This was a strange thing to wear. And oh look, you matched with half the girls staring up at you.

"Well could someone please tell me what the hell is going on?" you shout.

"You were given a forgetfulness potion, so now you think it is almost eleven months ago." A boy with blonde hair says. He was sitting closer to the front, and was smiling up at you. He was cute yes, but he looked oddly familiar. Which is weird if you were supposed to have forgotten everything, and that is if you even believed them.

"So I am at Hogwarts." You say slowly.

"Yes Miss Iverson. Now since we no longer have the antidote you will have to wait till your memories come back to you on their own. Which I think should take approximately three hours." The man says. You really didn't like this guy. He seemed like a jerk. And what teacher, you guessed that was what he was, gives a student a forgetfulness potion?

"Who has Lanae's next class with her?" the teacher asks.

About eight students raise their hands, including the blonde boy and Harry Potter. You wondered if he knew about you, or maybe you two don't even talk. You wouldn't blame him.

"Draco show her around, and try to catch her up on the last couple of months."

"Yes sir." The blonde boy responds, with a small smirk that gave you a really weird feeling.

"Excuse me Professor Snape, but shouldn't someone from her own house show her around? Both Harry and Ron are in her next class." A girl says kind of bossily, standing up. She was pretty, with wavy brown hair. Was she your friend? And houses? Your mom had mentioned those before, but you can't remember what she had said.

"Granger. Once again do not speak unless you raise your hand. And furthermore I think placing her under her Ex's or the Ex's best friend's supervision does not constitute as safe guardianship. And do not look at me that way Potter, I was there when you let the entire school know your feelings." The man named Snape growls.

Whoa, wait a second. You had an ex-boyfriend? And it was Harry Potter?? WHAT? You look back at Harry who looked conflicted, like he wanted to argue, but couldn't.

"Class dismissed." The teacher announces, and then turns to the blonde one, Draco you think his name was, and says, "Be careful Draco, she won't remember a single thing since last December. She slowly might regain memories until they all come back, shortly after lunch would be my guess. I would stay with her for as long as possible."

"Hellooooo. I lost my memory, not my hearing. Just tell _me_ all this, I don't need a liaison." You say, crossing your arms in front of your chest. This teacher was incredibly annoying.

"Don't let her hurt anyone Draco." He continues ignoring you. You roll your eyes and stomp over to the door, you were in complete control of your temper, and besides who would you hurt here at Hogwarts? You didn't even know anyone. Well you don't remember knowing anyone.

You go outside the door not bothering to wait for the blondie. He could catch up with you, even though technically you had no idea where you were supposed to be going. You stopped short though because Harry Potter was standing in your way.

"So you broke up with me?" you ask not being able to stop yourself.

"Technically." He says with sad eyes.

"How can you technically break up with someone? I mean why did you do it anyways? I am sure once my memory comes back I'll remember, but just for the sake of saving me time why not tell me again." You continue. Why were you babbling to your Ex? He probably didn't like you anymore because you talked too much. That would make complete sense.

"Lanae, I…" he says grabbing your hand softly. The moment his skin touched yours it felt like fireworks exploding all over your body. You yank your hand away. Maybe your mind forgot what you felt for this boy, but your body obviously has not. And he had broken up with you. Probably hurt you. And yet here he was trying to hold your hand? Maybe your Dad's spell left his brain a little fried. Oh that was mean. Bad Lanae; don't think things like that.

"Lanae it was just a part of…" Harry continues, but stops speaking the moment the blonde boy opens the door.

"What do you want?" He sneers, giving Harry this incredibly dirty look. Well hello hostility.

"Nothing that concerns you Draco." Harry replies, just as cold, "Catch you later Lanae." He adds before walking off.

"Someone doesn't like Harry Potter." You say in a singy-songy voice when you couldn't see Harry anymore.

"You don't either. He dumped you in front of everyone two nights ago." He says flippantly.

"Way to be subtle." You say quietly.

"Sorry, he just gets me in a bad mood." He says softer.

"Did that teacher tell you anything more?" you ask wanting to change the subject.

"He said you may not remember any of this when you get your memory back, but he isn't for sure."

"Are we friends?" you ask, not really caring about what he just said, still not able to shake how familiar he looks.

"You could say that."

You had this odd feeling like he wasn't being entirely truthful. Why had that girl gotten all defensive for you if this guy really was your friend? You were going to have to stick it out and see. At least he wasn't your ex, a little voice says in your head. And you had to agree with it.

"Do you want to go to divinations? Or do you feel like doing a little ditching?" He asks you.

"Do we do this often?" you ask, not sure how the rules worked around here. Was this guy going to get you in trouble?

"We did it last week." He smiles.

"Okay. Why not? Never liked divinations that much anyway." You add.

You change course and follow him down some stairs. "Where are we going?" you ask as the halls seemed to get creepier and creepier.

"To the Slytherin common room. Don't worry you've been there before. And you are in Gryffindor by the way, though I have no idea why." He says approaching a blank wall.

"Is that the house Harry is in?" you ask as you watch him pull out his wand and do something to the wall that causes it to open.

"Yes." He replies curtly. Mental note to self, stay away from any topic concerning Harry because it upsets the blonde one. You follow him through the doorway into a spacious living area. There was a fireplace and couches and tables. Everything was decorated in silver and green.

"What the hell is she doing here?" you hear someone scream.

You look to your right to see a small girl stomping down the stairs. She looked really angry.

"She is with me Christy." Draco says calmly. She ignores him and walks right up to you. She stood about a head shorter then you, and had facial characteristics of a child. She looked kind of cute when she was angry.

"How dare you show your face here after what happened last night!" she shouts.

"What happened last night?" you ask looking from her to Draco. She lets out a furious cry, and stomps her foot.

"You know exactly what happened wench. Don't play dumb with me." She says scathingly.

"Okay, well first of all I have no idea what you are talking about. Secondly after you're finished throwing your temper-tantrum maybe we could talk like adults? Or will that be too difficult for your teeny-tiny brain?" you say coldly, not liking how she was talking to you.

The girl looked like she was about to explode, but Draco interceded.

"Christy, leave her alone before she humiliates you again."

Christy makes a really awkward sound, something like a pig squeal, before stomping back up the stairs where she came from.

"What the hell was up her butt?" you ask turning to Draco's amused expression.

"You kind of got in a fight with her last night."

"I did? I wonder what she did to get me so angry." You say, wondering out loud.

"She insulted your mom." He says solemnly.

"Oh."

"Well come on, let's go some place we won't be bothered." He says grabbing your hand and pulling you out the way you came in. You didn't argue, and didn't pull your hand away. It felt nice. You wonder how close you two really are. He seemed nice enough, and he knew a lot about you.

You followed him up flights of stairs, down hallways, and what you felt like was the entire school. Finally he stopped in front of a blank wall across from a tapestry where this guy looked like he was trying to teach trolls how to dance. This was where you wouldn't be bothered?

You watch as he walks back and forth in front of the wall. You were about to ask what the heck he was doing when a door started to appear. Wow.

"Come on," he says taking your hand again and pulling you in the room after him. Inside was a large bedroom. It was pretty, but dark. The door closes behind you.

"Where are we?" you ask heading to the bed. It looked really comfy.

"The room of requirement. It can turn into any room you need." He says. You could almost see the smirk on his face without even looking at him.

"So you needed a gothic bed room?" you ask, throwing yourself on the huge bed.

"It's not gothic." He quips climbing on the bed till he was sitting next to you.

"It so is." You argue leaning on your arm so you could look at him.

He smiles. You notice for the first time the color of his eyes. They were a really pretty blue. Like a silver-blue that sparkled like the moon. Okay, so that thought was totally cheesy.

"What are you thinking?" he asks out of the blue.

"Um…" you mumble. You couldn't tell him the truth. Oh yeah you were just thinking about his eyes. Creepy. You didn't even know what your relationship was with this guy.

"Yes?" he chuckles.

"I was just thinking how weird this is." You say quickly. Thank goodness the first thing that popped into your head was logical.

"What is the last thing you remember?" he asks. You look at his curious face. He seemed so sincere.

"It was my first day at my second foster home. I got kicked out of my first one after one week. I wasn't normal apparently." Draco raises an eyebrow.

"It was a muggle foster home. So that meant no magic. My mom figured it was the only way my dad wouldn't be able to find me. She set it all up before…" you finish, your words getting caught in your throat.

"I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's okay." You say taking a deep breath, calming down. You were not going to lose it again.

"Anything you want to know?" he asks.

"Well, what are we?"

Your question must have surprised him because he looked startled. It even kind of surprised you. Of all the things you wanted to know, you ask him that? You should have asked about him, who was he, where did he come from, stuff like that. He could be your enemy. Then again why would that teacher have asked him to show you around?

You wait in silence, wondering what he was going to say.

"What do you mean?" he says quickly.

"I see how you look at me. I just want to know what our relationship is."

More silence. You didn't think it was that difficult of a question. He looked like he was debating with himself.

"We're just friends." He says almost painfully.

You wanted to comment on that but decided against it. If that's all he wanted to tell you then you weren't going to argue with him. You could tell he was keeping something from you though.

"When is lunch?" you ask, changing the subject.

"Are you hungry?"

"No, I just want to know when my memory is going to come back." You admit.

"Oh. I should have known. It must be weird not remembering anything."

"Yeah. I mean, I know no one, and I'm supposed to know everyone it seems. You're the only one that looks even remotely familiar."

"I am?" he sounds taken aback.

"Yeah, but I don't know why."

"You mean you didn't even recognize Potter?" he asks.

"No." you whisper, not wanting to remember the way your body reacted to his touch.

"It must be my winning good looks." He says proudly. You laugh. He was really good looking. But it was his hair that looked so familiar. Suddenly a splitting pain shoots up your left arm. You grab it.

"What's wrong?" Draco asks worriedly, all joking gone.

"I don't know; it's my wrist. It feels like it is on fire." You scream as the pain becomes more insistent.

"I should go get Snape. This might be a side-effect." He says jumping off the bed.

"NO! Don't leave me." You shout. He stops mid-stride. He looked astounded. Why you had no idea. You didn't want to be left alone; it was as simple as that.

"Okay. Show me where it hurts." He made his way over to you. You look down at your wrist and notice a dark something beginning to form. What was it? And why was it growing on your wrist?

"What is it?" you scream again as the pain increases. You were looking up at the ceiling willing the pain to stop when, unexpectedly, it did.

"It doesn't hurt anymore!" you shout looking down at the wrist Draco was holding. Your cry of joy turned to a cry of horror when you realized what it was.

"You have the dark mark on your wrist. You must have tried to hide it." Draco begins sounding astonished.

"But that's impossible." You whisper, not being able to take you eyes off of it.

"The spell you used must cause you pain when it wears out." He finished, ignoring your comment. You look at his face. He was looking at you with a mixture of shock and jealousy.

"Let go." You shout, scrambling away from him. This couldn't be happening. Why did you have your Dad's mark on your wrist? He had been the reason your mom was murdered. Why would you have sided with him?

"I didn't know you had given in to your dad." Draco says quietly. You give him a sharp look.

"You know who my dad is?"

"Yes. I do." He confesses.

"I would never do this. He had my mom killed you know? I haven't even met him. She gave her life to keep me away from him, and now I am loyal to him? What have I done!?" you shout curling into a ball. You couldn't help the sorrow that was eating away at your soul. Even if it had been almost a year since she died, it felt like two weeks to you. And you couldn't hold back the sobs, or the tears. You didn't even care that Draco was there. You had turned your back against your mom. You betrayed her. You let out a wail. The emotional pain this was causing you felt worse then any physical pain you had ever felt.

"Lanae. You will be okay. You'll remember soon. There has to be a good reason, I know you well enough to know that you don't just give up. He must have convinced you it was for the greater good." Draco says softly as he sits next to you. You shake your head violently.

"Branding you daughter with some ugly tattoo is not okay!" you shout. You all of a sudden remembered that Voldemort had grabbed your wrist and then when he let go there was the mark, but you couldn't remember why or when for that matter.

"My parents have followed him since they were our age. I am in line to follow their footsteps, I kind of already am. It is just how things work sometimes."

You sit up and look at him. Really look at him. And then it clicked. Why he was so familiar. With a wicked yell you try to punch him but somehow the pain had momentarily caused your motor skills to stop working properly because he grabs your fist and pushes you down on the bed.

"Get off me! Your dad killed my mom! He killed her!" You scream, trying to kick him off of you.

"You already knew this Iverson." He says harshly. You stop struggling for a second. It was the first time he had spoken like that to you. Like you were beneath him. Which strictly speaking you were, but it stung. You were about to yell at him again when he leans down and kisses you.

You let out a surprise gasp as his lips move slowly against yours. You had felt this before! He pulls away for a breath.

"You said we were just friends, but we've kissed before." You say accusingly. He just shrugs.

"It doesn't surprise me for some reason. Kissing the son of my mother's murderer. Not now that I sided with my dad. I probably was only dating Harry to get close to him for my dad in the first place." You say angry with yourself, but then again you had made these decisions all on your own right? No one forced you to kiss Draco before, not that you can remember of course. And how could your dad force you to be on his side? You had gone willingly.

And now this sexy blonde guy was sitting on top of you, holding you down, and you were too busy screaming to even enjoy it. He was looking down at you, obviously waiting for you to say something more.

"Well are you going to take advantage of this position we're in or what?"

He raises an eyebrow and then smirks. His lips come down on yours again, but this time you were expecting it, almost wanting it. His hands loosen their grip on your wrists and slide down your body, feeling the curves you offered him. You let out a moan as his hands find their way up your shirt.

He pulls away breathing heavily. "Damn girl." He manages, before you flip him over on his back so you were straddling him. This seemed so easy. Like you had done it before. Something green flashed in your memory but you ignored it.

He looked up at you, his eyes hungry for more. You smirk, slowly unbuttoning your shirt. His lips part slightly as you throw your shirt to the ground, leaving you only in your skirt, bra and tie.

"You look like you want me." You lean down whispering in his ear.

Before he could respond you heard the sound of a door opening. You look over your shoulder to see Harry staring at you with wide eyes. You cock your head to the side a little. He looked devastated. But that didn't make any sense. He had broken up with you. It was only natural for you to find someone else, wasn't it?

"Who the hell is interrupting us?" Draco growls sitting up slightly. You look back at Draco to see his reaction. Instead of embarrassment he looked completely joyous. Like he had just won something. You look back at Harry who now looked livid.

"I'll let you get back to business." He says coldly turning around, slamming the door behind him.

You look back at Draco who still had that triumphant expression on his face. Why did you have a horrible feeling all of a sudden? Like something wasn't right. You quickly jump off Draco and grab your shirt pulling it on.

"What are you doing?" Draco asks lamely.

"Leaving. Something isn't right." You say.

"Of course everything is right. You're here with me. What more do you need?" he asks sounding like a cocky little bastard. You had this insane desire to punch him, but decide against it.

"My memories." You say giving up on buttoning your top. Without a final look at Draco you race out of the room, ignoring the weird sense of déjà vu.


	24. Remembering

You still couldn't remember where you were going, but somehow your body knew. It was leading you, or maybe it was following Harry somehow. You needed to find him. That look he gave you, the one that made you feel insanely guilty was not okay. Something was incredibly wrong. Even if you were conspiring against all that is good and you were working for your dad, Harry had seen something he shouldn't have and you needed to fix it.

You were letting your feet lead you up stairs and down hallways until you came to a portrait with a fat lady in it. She looked at you with a very annoyed expression on her face.

"Password." She says in a very thick British accent.

"I don't know any password." You argue.

"No password, no admittance." The fat lady drawls.

You wanted to scream and pull your hair out. You knew you needed to get in there, wherever there was.

"Just this once?" you ask as politely as possible.

"No." the fat lady replies snippily. You were so close to kicking her when you heard your name being called.

"Lanae? Is that you?"

It was that pretty girl with the brown hair that had defended you. She was with a redheaded boy. You suddenly became very aware of how unbuttoned your shirt was.

"This stupid Fat lady won't let me in!" you grumble, holding your shirt together.

"So you remember then?" the redheaded boy asks.

"I have no idea who you are. So no, still do not remember. All I know is that I need to get into that." You say pointing at the portrait.

"Lanae! Your wrist!" the girl screeches. You were pointing with your left hand, fully exposing the dark mark. Oh great now she was going to flip. She certainly didn't look like anyone your dad would employ and the last thing you needed was for more people to find out about this double life you seemed to be leading.

"It's just a burn." Good one Lanae. Great excuse.

"What are you talking about?" she says grabbing your arm to get a closer look, "That stupid potion must have interfered with my spell." She continues more to herself then to you. Now it was your turn to look at her confused. What was she talking about? Her spell?

"What happened to you?" the guy asks.

"Ron be quiet! I have to concentrate." The girl snaps.

Before you could react she had her wand out, muttered something and then a weird tingling sensation wrapped around your wrist. You watched as the mark slowly disappeared. Okay so maybe this girl did know more then you thought.

"Now, you were saying?" she asks.

The portrait swung open producing a tall guy with shiny longish brown hair. He looked cute enough. He smirks when he notices you, stopping right in front of you, leaving the portrait door open.

"It would seem someone got Potter in a mood. I asked him how you were doing since last night and, would you believe it, he threatened me. Weird for a guy who says he doesn't want anything to do with you." The guy remarks.

"Leave her alone Luke." The girl says pulling you back so you were standing behind Ron and her. These people were acting like your friends, but how could you have made friends if you were evil? Maybe you were a really good actress.

"I wasn't talking to you mudblood." Luke snarls.

"Don't ever call her that again." Ron shouts pulling out his wand.

"Oh please, neither one of you are even worth my time. I just wanted to tell Lanae I'll be watching her, and that she won't be able to hide from the truth, even if…" Luke rambles on. Okay so this guy was incredibly creepy, and was really getting on your nerves. You just needed to talk to Harry.

"Would you shut up? Stupefy!" you shout throwing the spell between the girl and Ron hitting him squarely in the chest. He flies backwards into the wall, slumping to the ground.

"Lanae! He was unarmed!" The girl shouts running over to the unconscious body.

"Memory problems." You say shrugging. The Ron guy chuckles a tad before going over to her side. You knew Luke would be fine, not that you cared, and now that the portrait was open you could finally go in. You hear the girl shout your name but you ignore it.

You look around; except for the colors it was almost the same as the Slytherin common room. So do you go up the right staircase or the left staircase? Eenie meenie minie, that one, you say pointing to the right. You rush up the stairs and instead of stopping short at all the doors you walk up to the second one on the left. You don't even knock as you turn the knob and step inside, closing it quickly behind you.

There, sitting in a chair with his head in his hands was Harry. He looked up, obviously startled to see you.

"What are you doing? Surely Draco didn't show you the way here." he says coldly, standing up.

"No. He didn't. I just knew somehow where to go." You say shyly, wrapping your shirt tightly around you.

"You mean you remember?" Harry asks, sounding incredibly hopeful. His hope stung. How could you have betrayed him? Even standing in his presence gave you tingles. You wanted to throw yourself to his feet and beg for forgiveness. You didn't want to be evil, but you were. At the very least you could tell him the truth, before you change your mind.

"No. I don't. But I have to tell you something, before my memory comes back. I am so going to regret this, but here it is: my father is Lord Voldemort and I am loyal to him. I have probably been spying on you since day one, and it was very smart of you to break off any relationship you had with me. That's all. So just stay away from me." You warn him.

You thought that maybe he would start putting two and two together, realizing how obvious it must have been all along, and maybe wonder how he didn't notice that you were evil, but instead of the epiphany you were expecting, he starts laughing. That's right. Laughing.

"This is funny to you?" You ask angrily, putting your hands on your hips and glaring at him. So much for trying to do a good deed.

Instead of explaining himself he launches himself towards you. You weren't expecting it and had no time to grab your wand. You close your eyes half expecting him to punch you or tackle you to the ground.

You feel his soft lips collide into yours. You open your eyes in shock. He was definitely kissing you, pulling you deeper into his embrace. You were about to struggle, try and fight this crazy guy off of you, but you had this odd feeling that kissing him was right. And good. Really good for that matter.

You close your eyes and enjoy his touch. He felt so different from Draco, like you somehow belonged there with him. But that didn't make any sense; you were his enemy. Your dad had killed his family.

He pulls away slowly, looking down at you. You didn't know what to say, his eyes were so green. Like the green in your memory…

"You aren't evil Lanae." He whispers, resting his head on yours.

"But what about…" you argue trying to pull away, but he doesn't let you go.

"I knew who your dad was. And I know you have the dark mark on your wrist." He says slowly, urging you to believe him.

How could that be true? You wanted so much to believe him, to believe you weren't on your dad's side. Your head began throbbing. You try and blink out the blurriness that had suddenly clouded your vision.

"What's happening?" you whimper collapsing in his arms.

"Lanae? Lanae?" Harry shouts, shaking you awake. He stops when he realizes that you were looking up at him.

"Lanae?" he asks again.

You were lying on the ground, with him kneeling over you. You smile as you lift up your head and kiss him. He relaxes, and kisses you back, helping you sit up at the same time. Talk about multi-tasking.

"I'm so sorry." You say after pulling away. You felt horrible. First of all you still had a headache, and second of all you remembered everything. Including the last couple of hours that you had made a complete fool out of yourself.

"You're back." He whispers, leaning in and giving you another soft kiss.

"And I'm still sorry." You mutter.

"I know." He says caressing your cheek with the back of his hand.

"How are you not angry with me? I have got to be the worst girlfriend in the history of girlfriends."

"You were under the influence of the potion. Don't get me wrong, I don't know if I have ever been that jealous in my entire life. But I can only imagine what Malfoy said to you in the first place." He argues, though his face grew dark.

"At least he thinks I'm on Voldemort's side now." You say, looking on the bright side. A very dull and overcast bright side.

"That does mean less plotting." Harry agrees as he starts to button your shirt back up. You blush. Something a heartless death eater would never do. You were really going to have to try and keep yourself from doing anything an evil witch wouldn't do. Like blushing and beating a fellow evil wizard to a pulp, thinking specifically of Draco.

"Well you've ditched enough classes for today. Let's get to charms." Harry suggests helping you stand up.

"Actually, I need to go talk to Snape." You say, as the wheels in your head start turning slowly. The headache was slowly dissipating, and everything was getting clearer.

"Didn't you get enough of him today? And he probably has a class anyway." Harry says.

"I don't really care if he has a class or not. I need to discuss something with him; hopefully it won't take all class period. So I'll see you in charms okay?" you propose.

He gives you this sad puppy-dog look that makes you want to kiss him all over. You sigh. "We aren't going to be able to sit together anyways."

"But I could stare longingly at you from afar." He says in mock-seriousness. You punch him lightly in the shoulder and roll your eyes.

"Well you can do that for half a class period. I'll see you soon, ex-boyfriend of mine." You say, giving him one more kiss before heading out his door and out of the common room. You had a certain determination in your step. You were glad Harry was not holding anything against you. But you were furious.

Professor Snape had some explaining to do, because you would bet everything you owned that the antidote you had knocked over was not the only one he had.


	25. Cooling Down

**To any and all who have reviewed this story, thank you. **

**Even the one that did not like it... :p**

**I have absolutely no idea how to reply to reviews so this is trying to make up for that.**

**Thank you thank you thank you. **

**I also would like to add that HP and the HBP is coming out in 9 days here in America.**

**And I am positively ecstatic.**

**Hope you all are too!**

**Enough of my babble, here is chapter 25...**

* * *

You had no intention on barging into one of Snape's classes and causing a riot, but you were sorely tempted. If he was in the middle of a class you did not know exactly how you would handle yourself. You couldn't start yelling and condemning a professor in front of your peers without some major consequences, but you were worried you wouldn't be able to control your temper.

You slowly open the door to find an empty classroom. Completely empty. No Snape in sight. You decide to check his office before you venture off to look for him elsewhere. Without knocking you open the door. And there was Snape sitting at his desk, looking bored to be alive.

"Miss Iverson, is knocking a foreign concept to you?" he says in, what a shocker, a bored tone. He didn't even look up to see that it was you. He is so weird.

"It's amazing what I can forget when I am forced to drink a forgetfulness potion."

"So you have your memory back? And already. That was faster then I thought." He notes dully shifting through some papers on his desk. You were becoming increasingly annoyed that he has yet to even glance up at you.

"Faster then you thought? Or faster then you'd hope? Because I would love to know what that whole stunt was about in the first place." You state, folding your arms over your chest.

"I have absolutely no idea what you are referring to Miss Iverson." He replies, still not looking up. You fight back the urge to growl at him.

"You are a liar."

"Twenty-five points from Gryffindor. Would you like me to make it fifty?" he says in a deadly cold voice, finally glaring up at you.

"What did I ever do to you Professor?" you scream. No longer able to hold anything back you let him have it. "I know you had an extra vile of that antidote somewhere. You are anything but incompetent. So why did you do it? You wanted me to be powerless to Draco Malfoy? You wanted to annoy Harry Potter? You wanted to hurt me? Who knows why the hell you did it. But I hope you are satisfied, because it all worked. Dumbledore may think whatever he wants, but you don't fool me for a second. My dad chose a great right-hand man, I'll give you that much."

Not wanting to wait for him to dock more points from your house you leave. You are breathing hard as you make your way to charms. You had just screamed at a professor, and accused him of being in league with Voldemort. It wouldn't surprise you if everything you had said was true, but you had this odd feeling like there was more to him. Even if you didn't know what it was. You wanted to kick the wall you were so furious. So much for a calm, rational adult talk. He probably hates you even more now. You really have got to stop pissing people off.

Later that night you found yourself alone in the room of requirement. Harry, Ron and Hermione had just left, leaving you alone with your thoughts. It was fun hanging out with them, telling them all about last night and what happened in this very room with Christy. And then making Harry laugh when Ron told him how you cursed Luke. It had made you forget that you were not normal for a while. It was nice.

And now it was your turn to head back to the Gryffindor tower. You did not explain to them exactly what you said to Snape, even though they had prodded. If anything they would see how Snape treats you next class and figure out what happened themselves. Yelling at a professor, especially Snape, would not get swept under the rug. Turning around a corner you almost run into Draco.

"I assume you got your memory back." Draco suggests, smirking slightly at you.

"I did." You say shortly. You wanted to get up to the dorm and sleep. That's all you wanted to do.

"And do you remember anything?"

"You mean how you took advantage of my _situation_?" you ask, raising an eyebrow. You knew full well he was directly referencing your little make-out session. The one he didn't force you into. It must have been a huge change for him.

"I did no such thing. I simply let you come to your own conclusions. And besides, you were the one on top of me remember?" He was totally enjoying the recap in his head, you could tell. It made you want to cringe. If you were evil you would be a total whore; that was obvious.

"Yeah. I remember." You mutter looking away.

"Don't be shy. You practically dominated me, and you looked good doing it." He adds suggestively, not even trying to act like he wasn't staring straight at your boobs.

"Let's get something straight Draco. You and I are friends, and I use that term loosely. What happened today will not be happening again any time soon."

"I'm a patient guy. And now that I know you were using Potter this entire time only makes you that more appealing." He says, now practically leering at you. You would have sworn he was going to start humping the air soon. Boys are such pigs.

"I still have a reputation to uphold Draco so you can't go blabbing to everyone and their mother about what happened got it?"

"It'll be our little secret. And Potter's too." He chuckles.

"You don't have to worry about Harry. I took care of him." You say, wanting to keep Draco as far from Harry as possible, for as long as possible.

"But how did you…" before he could finish his question you push him up against the wall, glaring daggers at him.

"Do not question me. If I said I took care of it, I did. End of discussion."

He looks at you wide eyed, completely taken off-guard by your sudden mood-swing. You back away from him, calming down. Draco had to presume you were in control of everything, otherwise it might all unravel.

"Someone needs some sleep." He says, rubbing his shoulder where you pushed him.

"Tell me about it." You mumble.

"See you later sexy." He says giving you a wink.

"Do not call me that." You yell at him as he walks away. You were beginning to have a nauseated feeling that this plan of yours could go horribly horribly wrong.

_______________________________

The week goes by in a blur. Snape did not mention your outburst, and he did not seem to let it affect his attitude towards you. He still wasn't pleasant, but he hadn't gotten any worse. The fake animosity between Harry and you died down, allowing you two to actually be friends again in public. But you also made sure you spent time with some Slytherins, like the bartender whose name you found out was Laurel. She wasn't bad, and it kept anyone from nagging you about only hanging with the Golden Trio.

It was breakfast on Saturday when Dumbledore stood up in front of the entire school to give an announcement.

"As you all know, Halloween is in two weeks. We have decided to throw a costumed ball. It is not for the faint of heart for there will be professors dancing." Most of the people around you laughed, "Use your trip to Hogsmeade this weekend wisely. You do not want to show up as a turnip."

And that was the end of his speech. He was the most eclectic man ever. The great hall was buzzing with the news. Hermione, who sat next to you looked distraught. Ron, who sat in front of her, looked oblivious. You were beginning to wonder if something was seriously wrong with his head if he could not realize how Hermione felt for him. Speaking of feelings Harry was late. You look towards the entrance and see him standing there talking to some dark haired girl. Probably helping her with something, like the wonderful guy he is. You smile to yourself and turn back around to your food.

"I wonder what Cho is bugging Harry about now." Ron mumbles through the food that so eloquently filled his mouth.

"Who knows," Hermione sighs, still sounding way too melancholy.

"Is that the girl he's talking to?" you ask, your curiosity getting the better of you.

"Yeah. His ex-girlfriend so to speak." Ron answers, still gobbling down food.

"His other ex-girlfriend," Hermione adds quickly. She was always the one who helped you keep the whole charade going half the time.

"Right." You say, glancing back at him again. He was still talking to her. She looked as if she was laughing, and yes she just pushed him lightly. In that flirty "I cant believe you just said that" kind of way. That little bitter feeling of jealousy was starting to stir about in your stomach. You look away. Just take a deep breath. She was history. Even though you didn't know her history. Harry had failed to ever even mention her. Which is a good sign right? She couldn't have been that big of a deal then. If she was important he will bring her up. You were not going to turn into a jealous monster because Harry is a nice guy and does not ignore his Ex-girlfirend completely.

"We all going to Hogsmeade together then?" Harry asks taking a seat next to you. You fought the urge to lean over and kiss him showing everyone you were definitely still a couple.

"Sounds great." You say instead, smiling at him. He gives you a wink and begins to eat.

___________________________________________________

"What do you think about this one?" Hermione asks lifting this ugly brown smock up to her.

"Dear lord put that back. What have I told you about touching things." You chuckle, going back to sifting through the racks and racks of costumes. It was a zoo in here, a shop set up exclusively for the ball in two weeks. And after an hour of searching neither one of you had found anything remotely good.

"This is getting ridiculous. I mean what the hell is this supposed to be anyways?" you grumble pulling out what might have been a whale costume or maybe it was supposed to be a nun costume.

"Maybe the good ones have all gone." She replies sounding sad again. Only you knew it had nothing to do with the fact she couldn't find a costume. She was so sure Ron was never going to ask her to the dance. Of course you had told her it was still two weeks away, but for the first time you saw Hermione lose her composure and throw a small pity party for herself. And that was when you decided it was time to shop. Though shopping was obviously not having the desired effect.

"Look at this!" you shout pulling out a long white dress. It looked like something a Greek goddess would have worn. "Here, go try it on." You say shoving it in Hermione's hands.

"But you found it, I couldn't."

"You can, and you will. Now go."

She smiles slightly and leaves you alone with the rack of costumes. Now it was your turn. Though you had to admit, what was the point of getting all dolled up in some cool costume when you couldn't even go with your boyfriend?

"Hey Lanae!"

You look around and see Laurel coming towards you. She looked happy, which only happens sometimes. Specifically when she is away from Draco. He always put her in a dark mood for some reason.

"How are you? Did you find a costume?" you ask.

"You are now looking at the sexiest pirate to have ever sailed the seven seas. What about you?"

You laugh coldly, "Are you kidding? I'm lucky I found one for Hermione. Maybe I'll just go in my uniform and do some zombie make-up."

"Actually, why don't you go as a Slytherin?"

Your eyes open wide. She was a genius! That would be hilarious.

"You are terrific Laurel! Could I borrow your tie and cloak?"

"Of course. It will be wicked. I'll catch up with you later," she says, giving you a slight wave as she left the store. Hermione came around the rack just then grinning ear to ear.

"It is absolutely perfect." She squeals giving you a small hug.

"I knew it would be. Now come on let's go pay so we can meet up with the guys."

"But what about you? You didn't find anything?" she asks no longer smiling.

"No, but that is okay because I have found a solution to my problem. I am going to go as a Slytherin. I already know someone I am going to borrow a tie and cloak from!"

She chuckles while shaking her head slightly.

"Lanae you are incredibly odd."

"I know I know. Now let's pay and get out of here."


	26. Ironically Safe

"Will you go stag with me to the dance?"

You look down at Harry, kneeling in front of you holding a single rose. You could not have been happier under the circumstances. You didn't even bother with a verbal response. Instead you lean down to kiss him, in the process losing your balance and falling on top of him. Through your laughter you kiss him over and over. He held you tight, kissing you back tenderly.

"I take that as a yes?" he grins pulling away slightly. He was on top of you, his body unintentionally pinning you to the ground. Not that you minded, you liked the way he felt against you.

"Shut up and kiss me." You grin, pulling his head back down so you could feel his soft lips again. You did not care that you were rolling around on the floor together, or that you had someplace you needed to be. You wanted to stay in his arms forever.

"I think we squished the flower." You chuckle as you lean over to pick up the damaged rose.

"No, you squished the flower when you fell on top of me."

"I wish we could go as a real couple." You sigh getting up off of him. He stands up as well wiping off his pants.

"Oh yeah, our costumes would go great together. Robin Hood and the Slytherin girl."

"When did you start to care about matching costumes?" you ask, slightly annoyed by his comment.

"I was just playing Lanae. I wish we could go together too. At least we can go dateless together." He smiles, leaning down to give you another kiss. You wrap your arms around him, pulling him closer to you.

"I have to go." You whisper, looking up into his eyes.

"Don't. Just stay here with me." He begs, kissing you again, with more eagerness then before.

"I stayed with you last night. And as much as I want to stay again tonight I need to make an appearance. I promised."

"Did you promise them every Sunday then? Do I just have to get used to you picking them over me?" he retorts, stepping away from you. The absence of his touch sent a slight pang through your stomach.

"No. Of course not. Stop being stupid. I have to live with not being able to go to the dance as your date; you can live with me having to hang out with Draco and Co. every once in awhile." You snap back, not wanting him to see the way his words had stung you.

"Every once in awhile huh? If you aren't with me you're with them. It has only been one week of this and I am already getting sick of it."

"You think I like it? I didn't want this! I just want you. To hang with you, and have fun with you. You act like I'm just fine with this whole arrangement we thought up. But it sucks. For both of us." You shout as you take a seat on the couch.

A few moment of silence creep by, neither one of you saying anything. You wanted him to understand that this plan was not a bowl of sunshine and rainbows for you either. Sure Draco was being less of a creep now that you were friends, but it didn't make you want to dump Harry and run off with him. In fact it made you miss Harry even more.

"I am sorry. I shouldn't have gotten upset." Harry says quietly taking a seat next to you. You look at him, taking him all in. The messy black hair, the green eyes behind his round glasses, and the slight frown that was playing at his lips. You lean in somewhat and kiss him.

"I would much rather stay here with you Harry. I hope you know that."

He smiles and kisses you one last time.

"I do."

"Good. Now if I don't see you when I get back then I will definitely see you tomorrow in potions. I hope you sleep well. And thanks again for the rose." You add, giving him a hug before getting up to go.

"Be safe." He says, watching you head out the door.

"Aren't I always." You reply, giving him a wink and shutting the door behind you before it changed back into the wall.

______________________________________

Laurel told you this morning that the party thing would be held in the Slytherin common room instead of the room of requirement this weekend. You didn't ask why. You didn't really care, besides it allowed you to be alone with Harry a little more then you had planned today.

Thinking of Harry, had you just had your first fight with him? Well the kind of fights normal couples deal with at least? Not the ones about father's being evil wizard's that want to take over the world, because you had already covered that little dispute.

It ended well though hadn't it? He apologized and you forgave him. Is that how it usually works? So nicely? You didn't want to dwell on it, Harry and you were happy, and that was all that mattered.

Upon reaching the Slytherin common room you realized you had no idea how to get inside. Draco had always just waved his wand sporadically and wah-la it opened. You doubt it would work for you. Luckily the wall opened into a door and someone stepped out looking incredibly sick. You moved out of the guys way before vomited all over the floor, right where you used to be standing.

Oh Lord that was gross, you think hurrying into the common room. It seemed even more packed this weekend. And perhaps a little more crazy too. Girls were dancing with other girls, their skirts hiked up practically all the way. You noticed boys standing off in the distance watching them. You rush over to the bar that was located right next to the fireplace.

"There you are! Not as conspicuous without those tight black pants on this week." Laurel shouts over the insane noise.

"Hah hah. You're hilarious." You yell, taking a seat at the bar.

"Here, drink this. It'll help with the headache you will soon get."

"Is it a potion?" you ask, giving the red liquid a semi-glare.

"Hell no. It's a sex on the beach! My specialty." She grins wickedly turning to help another kid. You take the drink and start sipping on it. It wasn't too bad; you would give her that.

"I was beginning to think you weren't going to show." Draco shouts coming up to you, holding a beer in his hand.

"I am only an hour late bud." You shout back.

"You want to dance?" he asks, gesturing to the gyrating bunch of girls. You give them a dirty look before politely declining.

"Later."

"As you wish." He announces before turning back into the crowd. Hopefully he'd drink enough beer to forget your insinuation to dance later.

"You wound that boy's ego you know that?" you hear someone say in your ear. You turn and see the drop dead gorgeous Slytherin that you had talked to twice before. He was smiling at you.

"I uh, don't know what you are talking about." You mumble taking a couple swigs of your drink.

"Sure you don't. Do you only come to these things to torture him?" he pushes, his smile growing wider.

"Actually Draco and I are friends. We have found a common ground and he respects that."

The guy begins to laugh really hard, like somehow you had said something really funny. Though you know you hadn't.

"Oh come on. He respects the fact you have boobs and an arse. That's about it." The guy says still chuckling.

"That does sound more like Draco." You admit, going to take another drink only to have ice hit your lips. Wow, you drank that fast.

"Here's another one. They're good huh?" Laurel shouts handing you over another glass filled with the yummy red drink. You nod, and glance back at the guy. He was watching you, smiling away. Who was this guy? And why was he talking to you anyways? Gosh his smile was beautiful.

"You know not many Gryffindors come to these things." He says eyeing your gold and red tie.

"I am pretty sure most don't get invited. Unless they're bullies," you add thinking of Luke.

"You don't seem like a bully to me." The guy smirks.

"I wasn't referring to me. I was talking about this guy named Luke." You growl sipping on your new drink.

"Oh, Luke Evans."

"You know him?" you ask incredulously. Why was this drink so freaking good?

"Yeah, he is in my year. We hang out a lot actually. He isn't always a bad guy."

"Oh he's a bad guy, I can feel it." You mutter.

Five drinks, three shots, and a heated argument about a muggle invention called the cell phone you were feeling absurdly happy. Who cared that the whorish girls were dancing so close to the guys that they looked like they were having sex. Or that the music seemed to have gotten louder. Or that you had to think extra hard to formulate sentences. You were talking to this really nice guy, who also happened to be utterly and insanely gorgeous. And you didn't even know his name. That thought made you giggle.

"You know, I normally don't talk this much." You yell, pushing your empty glass away from you.

"I bet you don't." he grins. He likes to grin a lot you think as you stare into his eyes.

"Your eyes look like big yummy chocolate bars." You shout leaning forward slightly to get an even closer look. You move slightly too quickly and lose your balance, plummeting forward. He catches you, holding you upright.

"Not every day I get a pretty girl saying I have yummy chocolate eyes and falling all over me at the same time." He says helping you sit back up on your chair.

"Pfft, you think I'm pretty? Have you looked in the mirror lately? Hah!" you screech trailing into a fit of giggles.

"I think someone is a little tipsy." He chuckles, brushing a strand of hair out of your eyes. Boy he was nice. Why did everyone think Slytherins were all mean? You should tell them about this guy. He was nice.

"You know my dad is not a very nice man, but I think he'd like you." You say, giving him a lopsided grin. "If he doesn't kill you first!" you shout like it was the punch line to a funny joke. "If I could just tell him that…"

"Come on Lanae, Let's dance." The guy says, cutting all thought of your dad off, grabbing your hand. He looked a tad disgruntled, like you had said something to upset him. The thought trickled away as you began to move your body to the beat of the music. You had your back to him, swaying your hips in time with his. You could hold yourself up, but you liked leaning against him just the same. His hands were resting lightly on your waist. He felt nice.

Oh my God Harry! You think suddenly stepping away from him. What were you doing? Thinking some other guy felt nice. You were drunk. And you were dancing with a practical stranger! Harry was going to kill you. You try to turn around, to get away from him but he grabs your shoulders.

"Lanae are you okay?" he asks, sounding worried.

You shake your head, not trusting any words that would come out of your mouth at this point in time. You had to do everything in your power not to mention Harry.

"Hey Art, you got the girl to dance!" Draco shouts coming over to the two of you. You groan slightly. You did not need him of all people to see you like this.

"Are you going to be sick?" The guy asks again. Was his name Art? Maybe he likes to paint. That's nice.

"What's wrong with her?" Draco directs his attention back to the guy helping you stand.

"She had a little too much to drink."

"Are you going to be sick Lanae?" Draco asks you, feeling your forehead. That was uncharacteristically kind of him.

You shake your head again. You weren't sick. You were just feeling light-headed.

"Draco, come dance with me!"

"Not now Christy!" Draco shouts. You cringe a little at how loud his voice was.

"Go. I'll take care of her." The guy says wrapping an arm around your shoulders.

"Thanks Art. She can bunk in my room tonight if you don't think she can get back to her dorm." Draco shouts before heading back to some tart you could only assume was Christy.

"Come on, we can dance a little more if you want. I'll keep my hands to myself, don't worry." He says turning you to face him. He places his hands at your hips again, but kept you at an arms length. You put your hands at his shoulders to help you keep your balance. The song was slower so at least you didn't have to deal with fast movement.

"You're nice you know that? I was thinking and everything about you is nice. I'm sure your painting is nice too." You say happily, giving him a small smile. He looked very confused, but before you could ask why someone walking by bumps into you causing your knees to buckle and for you to tumble forward. For the second time tonight he caught you with steady hands.

"Maybe we should just get you to bed. Does that sound okay?" he asks. You didn't like how he sounded like he was talking to a baby. You were drunk, not a baby. There is a huge difference, but you nod just the same. He takes your hand and leads you through the throng of people. You had no idea what time it was, but you felt like it was late and couldn't help but wonder how all these people were still awake. Then again, you were still awake.

"Can you make it up the stairs?" he asks you, pausing briefly at the bottom of what looked like a never-ending staircase.

"Maybe?" you answer.

He laughs, and before you know it he picks you up bridal style and carries you up the stairs. You hold onto him tightly trying not to look around too much as every movement managed to make you dizzier.

"Here we go." He says in a normal voice as you enter a dorm room that looked just like the ones in Gryffindor tower. The music was quieter up here, and it helped the pounding in your head recede a little.

He sets you down gently on a bed. Wait, a bed? Whose room were you in? Certainly not a girl's room. It was so boring looking.

"Draco won't be up for a couple more hours at least, and even then he won't bother you."

"Draco? This is Draco's room? Why can't I sleep in Laurel's room?" you whine.

"Because Laurel has already shacked up with a guy somewhere."

"Even better! I could sleep in her bed!" you shout, not meaning to raise your voice. You were looking at him with pleading eyes.

"She rooms with Christy."

You groan, obviously defeated. Why had you gotten yourself into this predicament? You don't even remember drinking that much. You were just talking and laughing with this gorgeous guy in front of you. It was all his fault.

"Just get some sleep. I promise you'll be safe." He whispers placing a hand on your shoulder urging you to lie down.

"I am so going to be in trouble tomorrow." You say to yourself as your head hits the pillow. He takes a blanket and places it over you. It wasn't until he began to hum a lullaby that your eyes began to slowly close. It reminded you of your mom. You felt the tears slide down your cheeks, but didn't make a sound. You didn't want him to stop. You didn't know how long he stayed there humming to you, but it helped your headache and made you feel peaceful.

"Sleep well Lanae." He whispers, giving you a kiss on your cheek.

"Thank you Art." You mumble before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.


	27. Late

"Rise and shine Sleeping Beauty."

Whose voice was that? Certainly not Hermione's. Unless she was really sick and had a scratchy throat. You slowly open your eyes only to close them sharply, trying to block out the bright light that flooded your vision.

"You'll need to drink this if you don't want to have a headache all day."

"Why are you so loud?" you groan.

You peek your eyes open to see who the hell was bothering you. Leaning over you with only a towel wrapped around his waist was Draco? Draco!

"Holy Hell!" you scream jerking away from him, which was a very bad idea indeed because it gave you this horrible urge to vomit, not to mention your headache seemed to double in size.

"Geez, calm down. Drink this or going to class will be the least of your worries." He urges placing it in your hand. You grip the glass tightly, squeezing your eyes firmly shut. Everything from the night before coming back to you in a rush. You had really dug yourself into a hole this time hadn't you?

"Could you put some clothes on at least?" you mutter trying to sit up slowly.

"You're in my room Lanae. Deal with it."

You groan. You had to open your eyes so you could at least drink the stupid thing he had given you. You gulp it down quickly, gagging as you finished.

"That was so gross!" you shout.

"Yes, but it's the best thing to cure a hangover."

He was right. All the symptoms of a hangover were quickly dissolving. Your headache was diminishing and the light didn't bother your eyes as much making it easier to look around. Draco still remained naked except for the lone towel, and you didn't want to take the chance he would drop it randomly so you kept your eyes on everything but him. He was standing in front of his closet so you focused on the other side of the room where there was a dresser, with absolutely nothing on it. Mental note: buy him a picture frame or something.

"Fun night huh?" you ask, remaining awkwardly sitting on his bed.

"You mean you remember everything?"

"Of course I remember everything! I wasn't that drunk." You snap, giving him an evil glare forgetting briefly he was still practically naked. He couldn't have a smidge of modesty with you present? Was it that difficult? You think trying to keep your eyes solely on his face.

"Oh you were pretty drunk." He chuckles.

"Whatever." You say, rolling your eyes. You didn't need to argue with him, the only person who really knew anything about last night was Art, speaking of which you really needed to find him and apologize profusely.

You slide off the bed and walk over to the mirror on his dresser. Your reflection wasn't too hideous considering everything. Your blouse was a little ruffled and your skirt was crooked, but that was all easily remedied. Your make-up and hair was even okay.

"So thanks for letting me borrow your room and…" but all speech and thought was cut short because when you turned around Draco was standing very very close to you. Beads of water were dripping off his hair onto his bare shoulders. You instinctively move to back up, but hit the dresser.

"You're very welcome." He says.

"Draco, do not start this again." You mutter, not letting your eyes wander downwards to check if he was still wearing a towel.

"Come on, I was a gentleman all last night. Don't I get something because of it?"

"The knowledge that you can be a decent guy?" you answer.

"Seriously Lanae, it doesn't make sense for a girl like you to be single." He strokes your arm gently. You take hold of his hand and place it down at his side.

"Draco, you and I both know you're not looking for a relationship. And secondly we're better as friends. You need to accept that fact."

He rolls his eyes and turns around. "Well I am going to get dressed now, so unless you want to see me naked, _friend_, I suggest you head off."

"Thanks." You tell him, before heading out his door. You needed to go back to your dorm room and pick up your things for class anyway.

You were about to head down the stairs when you noticed the three girls in a heated discussion at the very bottom.

"I swear to you she never left."

"How could you possibly know that? You were drunk Christy, again."

"So were you Caroline. And do not give me that look Pansy, I know what I am talking about."

You realized you were frozen in place, staring down at them. How were you supposed to leave now? What were they planning to do? Lynch you? You didn't want to stick around to find out. There had to be another way out of there. Trying to think where you could find another escape route Christy sees you. Her eyes grow wide and before she could let out an ear-piercing screech you run back the way you came.

You could hear the three girls storming up the stairs. You run to Draco's door and without knocking fling it open. He was standing by his dresser shirtless, but at least he had on pants now. You shut the door swiftly.

"You changed your mind?" he asks looking a tad shocked.

"You wish. Your groupies are chasing me. Help?" you say in short bursts looking around for somewhere you could hide.

"Closet. Now." He says crisply, hearing the pounding footsteps stop just outside his door.

You make a beeline for the closet and jump in, ignoring the fact you were lying in a pile of Draco's probably dirty clothes and shoes. Draco shut the door behind you cutting off most of the light. It smelled. Just don't think about it you told yourself, holding very still.

The banging on the door was growing more insistent.

"God, I'm coming. Who is it?" Draco shouts.

You could only assume he had opened the door and the three girls had bounded inside. You could see Pansy looking around cautiously, while Christy stomped around like she owned the place.

"Where is she?" Christy asks angrily.

"Where is who?"

"You know!" she yells this time.

"It is far too early to play guessing games. I have no idea what you are talking about." Draco says nonchalantly, leaning on his bed.

"Christy said she saw Lanae run into your room. And she also accuses you of keeping her here over night." The other girl who must have been Caroline says timidly.

"Is that so?" Draco asks sounding very amused.

"Yes." Christy replies a little less sure of herself then before.

"Iverson and I are just friends, trust me. No threat to any of you at the moment. Second, you know I don't share my room with anyone, let alone a Gryffindor."

"But," Christy goes to interrupt but he cuts her off.

"Furthermore, even if what you said was true, please explain how it is any of your business?" Draco ends curtly.

"I.. um.." Christy stammers.

"That's what I thought. Would you like to accuse me of anything else while you're at it?"

"No Draco. We are sorry for bothering you. See you at lunch." Pansy says in a now bored tone.

"But, I know I saw her."

"Shut up Christy. You already made an ass out of us, stop making it worse." Caroline snaps. You were silent as they left the room. They didn't even second-guess him. How did they trust this guy so blindly? Not that you weren't thankful in this case.

The door to the closet swung open and there stood Draco, smirking ear to ear. He held out his hand and helped you up.

"The things I do for you." He chuckles.

"Put a shirt on while you're at it."

"So cold." He laughs throwing the shirt he had grabbed from the closet over his head.

_________________________

The two of you were running down the hallway trying not to laugh. Draco had thought it best, and you didn't disagree, that you should be a little late to potions in order to keep from running into the three stooges on your way out. Only problem was that you started playing a game of poker and had lost track of time.

"You owe me four sickles." He says as you reach the door to the classroom.

"I told you we were just playing for fun." You were leaning against the wall trying to calm your breathing down.

"Okay, four kisses then."

"Not happening." You chuckle, able to stand up straight now. It was thirty minutes into class already. On the plus side you did not run into anyone on your way here, but now you had to deal with Snape for being late. Maybe because you were with Draco he'd overlook it. Fat chance.

"Ready?" he asks you, grinning.

You give a slight nod and he opens the door. You follow him into the classroom, every single eye on the two of you.

"Malfoy and Iverson. How nice of you to fit my class into your busy schedule." Snape drawls.

"Sorry we're late professor." Draco answers, not sounding sorry at all.

"Well you can be sorry in detention with me tomorrow. Both of you. Now go take your seats."

You groan, but Draco nudges you with his elbow and gives you a wink before heading towards the front of the classroom. You roll your eyes and find the empty seat next to Hermione.

"Where have you been?" she hisses under her breath trying to make it seem like she wasn't talking to you.

"I got sick last night and had to stay in Laurel's room." You lie. It wasn't that you wanted to lie, but who would it hurt? Absolutely nothing happened besides you making a fool out of yourself. And all the truth would do is make people upset. It wasn't like they were going to find out anyways; they aren't exactly on speakings terms with Draco or any other Slytherin for that matter.

"But why were you late? And with Draco?" she continues.

"I slept in and when I was ready to leave it was just a coincidence he was leaving at the same time."

She didn't look at you so you couldn't tell if she believed you or not. You did however turn your head to see Harry starring holes into you. He did not look happy. You give him a small smile and mouthed the words I'll explain after class. He nodded shortly and looked forward.

Class was utterly boring. You have no idea how Snape can talk for such a log amount of time. At least it wasn't another one of his experiments you get pushed into. You stood outside class waiting for Harry and Ron. They were taking forever.

"You're lucky Harry didn't find out you were missing until this morning, I think he would have broken into the Slytherin common room last night if he had found out earlier." Hermione mutters.

"That would have been stupid. I was perfectly safe." Kind of, you think.

"What happened last night? And why where you late? And with Draco? Are you okay?" Harry asks the moment he sees you.

"No need for the twenty questions Harry. Calm down. I am just fine. I got sick last night and Laurel let me stay with her, and I overslept. Then when I went to go to class this morning it just so happened Draco was leaving at the same time. So we walked together." The lie flowed easily from your mouth. It wasn't till the end that you felt a slight pang of guilt. You had promised him you'd tell him everything, but was that such a necessity? Especially when nothing happened? No, it was not.

"He was going bloody crazy. You should have seen him." Ron laughs, winning a fierce glare from Hermione.

"He was just worried. We all were." She adds.

"I am okay. And I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. You didn't ask to get sick. At least Laurel let you stay with her." Harry concedes.

You give him a hug. You wanted to kiss him too. Boy did you want to kiss him.

"You want to skip Divinations?" you whisper in his ear. He looked thoughtful as you pulled away from him.

"Come on you guys, get to class, otherwise Lanae will have another detention to add to her list no doubt." Hermione says pushing the three of you off in the direction of your next class.

"Thanks Mom." You mumble, bummed that you were going to have to pretend to read tea leaves instead of making out with your boyfriend.


	28. Unknown Past

"Is school getting more boring by the day or is it just me?" you ask playing with the last bit of broccoli you had left on your plate. Both yesterday and today seemed to have dragged on for forever.

"It's just you."

"Couldn't agree more."

You laugh at the conflicting responses that came from Hermione and Ron. They both looked at each other with rather appalled expressions, as if what the other had said was completely outrageous. Who ever said opposites attract was a genius.

"It does seem to have gotten a tad dull." Neville admits.

"Not you too!" Hermione groans, tossing down her roll.

You continue to laugh, Ron and Neville joining in. Who in the world would be able to keep a straight face with Hermione throwing food around? Certainly not you three.

"It is all about how much you put into the class. After five years you'd think you would have learned that by now." Hermione states, folding her arms across her chest.

"So you quit divinations because?" Ron prods, grinning slightly.

"That does not count. She was insufferable. You can't learn a thing from her!"

"It's all about how much you put into the class!" Both Ron and you mimic her, causing a slight red glow to spread to Hermione's cheeks. She gave a little huff.

"You're cute when you're frazzled." Ron says taking a bite of the roll Hermione had thrown on the table.

He didn't seem to notice the silent shock that hit her. She was staring at him with a dazed expression. Knowing she didn't want to get caught looking at Ron like that you change the subject.

"Anyone know where Harry is?"

"Haven't seen him since last class. Don't know why he is so late for dinner though." Ron answers looking up from the already half-eaten roll in his hand.

"I guess I'll just see him after my detention then." You grumble.

"I wanted to ask you Lanae if you could help me with the new spell we learned today in DADA. You seemed to have gotten it straight away, and I thought you'd be my best chance at performing above horrible." Neville asks, pushing all thoughts about Harry away, for a few seconds at least.

"I'd love to. After dinner for the next couple of days sound good to you?"

"Sounds perfect." He smiles.

"Well I guess I am off to my torture session. Wish me luck."

"Good luck." They all say in unison, watching you head off for your hour of agony with Snape and Draco. Your two favorite people in the whole wide world.

At least they would help get your mind off Harry. In the last two days you've talked to him about twice. You are both busy, yes, but it has been weird. You can't explain it, but it has you slightly worried. You're probably just being paranoid. That's what usually happens when you lie. Shut Up! You tell your thoughts as you slide inside Snape's office door.

"So you can be punctual." Snape says, not looking up from his desk.

"Amazing isn't it?" you mock, taking a seat in the chair up against the wall.

"And where is Draco?"

"How should I know?"

He looks up at you, looking like he was about to say something but thought better of it. Probably some insult. You just wanted to get this over with and get on with your life.

"Do you know where Filch's office is?"

You nod, hoping it was more of a rhetorical question.

"He needs some filing done."

"Good for him."

"And you're going to do it." Snape remarks. You groan. You knew that was where this topic of conversation was leading to, but it still sucked having to hear him confirm it. You and Filch did not see eye to eye. Which wasn't entirely your fault. Even though he was a squib he could do some major damage with that damn cat of his.

"What about Draco?" you ask, trying to stall as long as possible.

"He is none of your concern."

Yeah, he'll probably let him off scot-free, while you get to file boring report after boring report. Why a magical school even had files was beyond you; it seemed like more of a muggle thing.

"That is all. Report back here when you are finished."

Without another word you left and headed straight for Filch's. This was going to be a great reunion. You probably should have asked Snape how long this little filing job was going to take.

"Take your sweet time I see. Snape will love to hear about it." Filch barks the moment he sees you. You didn't even bother arguing with him, it wasn't like he would let you win. You followed him to a type of storage room filled with piles and piles of manila folders. You stood there, your mouth agape.

"When was the last time you organized this place? 1812?"

He grunts in response and closes the door behind him, shutting you alone in the room. You stare around at all the files. This was insane. Snape really really hates you.

With a sigh you pull out your wand and take a seat on the floor. File after file flew to you and then was either placed aside or flew into the metal cabinet attached to the wall. It was rather monotonous work; no thinking required what so ever. You were about to doze off when you ran across a folder labeled Harry Potter.

Against your better judgment you open it. It listed all of the detentions Harry had accrued over the past five years. His first one was with Hermione and Draco of all people. It says here that they were taken into the forbidden forest. It also included visits to the hospital wing. He was there a lot. And what was this about a flying car? His second year he damaged a whomping willow on the grounds by means of a flying car. You try to picture it but end up laughing instead. There was so much about Harry that you still didn't know. Maybe next time you hung out he'd share with you all these stories.

You put his folder in the proper pile and call for the next one. It was about six times as large as all the others. It was George and Fred Weasley's folder. Were they related to Ron? You shifted through all the reports made on them. They were hilarious on paper; you could only imagine them in person.

As you continued to file you grew more curious as to whom you were filing away. You ran across people like James Potter who you could only suspect was Harry's dad. Then there was Draco Malfoy, and even yourself. Though your file was a lot smaller considering you've only been here for two months.

You had no idea how long you had been filing for, and you were beginning to think you had done enough when you came across a folder that made your heart stop. It was labeled Nikole Iverson. Your mother.

You held the folder delicately in your hands. What should you do? Open the disciplinary world of Nikole or file it away and pretend like you never saw it. Taking deep calming breaths you open it.

Your mother had never divulged a lot about her past. She was your magical teacher and caretaker and left the past in the past. She had told you who your father is and how evil he was, that's about it. So seeing that she was a Slytherin completely floored you. How could both of your parents have been Slytherin while you got put in Gryffindor? The more you read the more confused you got. Over half of her detentions served were with Severus Snape. Usually for minor things like tardiness or being out of bed past hours. But still, how did that make any sense. Maybe he got her in trouble and got caught in the process you think, turning to the very last page.

There was a photograph. You seem to move in slow motion as you take a closer look. Your mother was standing on the left; she looked like she was in her teens. She had short black hair that almost matched the boy on the right. Though his looked a tad greasy. The girl in the middle was pretty with longish red hair and bright green eyes. Her eyes looked so familiar. They were all smiling up at you, waving slightly. They all looked happy. You flip it over.

_Severus Snape, Lily Evans, and Nikole Iverson. Fall '75_

You became aware of the tears when you noticed the water stains that were now decorating your mother's file on your lap. You didn't bother wiping them away; it wasn't like they were going to stop anytime soon. You pull the photograph out and place the folder aside. Holding that picture you felt completely alone. Your mother was gone, and there was so much she hadn't told you. She was taken from you. The emptiness and pain in your stomach that you fought so hard to keep tucked away was slowly creeping back. You felt as if the world around you was sinking away. A steady darkness engulfs you making it incredibly difficult to breathe. The wrenching sobs overtake you and you crumple into a ball on the floor, your fingers still clutching the happy picture of your mom.

"Severus, what happened?" Dumbledore commands upon entering the hospital wing. The two men were standing around you. You were sitting on a bed holding your knees to your chest in a comatose state only moving when someone would try to take the photo from you.

"I found her curled into a ball on the floor of Filch's storage closet. She was supposed to check in with me two hours ago. She would not respond to anything I did nay for trying to take the photograph from her grasp. She tried to kick me. After making sure she was not cursed I brought her here and summoned you."

"Do you have any idea what brought this on?" Dumbledore asks, placing a hand on your head and closing his eyes.

"No sir."

"I do not know what has happened to her sirs, but if we can get her to drink this I think it will help improve her physical state." Madame Pomfrey exclaims rushing over to your side.

"Alas Madame Pomfrey I do not think it is her physical state that needs helping." Dumbledore says removing his hand from your head.

"Sir?" Madame Pomfrey questions.

"Severus, you didn't by chance get a look at this photograph Miss Iverson is holding onto so dearly?"

"I didn't make it a priority, no."

"Perhaps you should have. I think this is a mild form of depression." Dumbledore announces walking over to Snape's side.

"Mild?" Madame Pomfrey repeats.

"Depression?" Snape asks sounding alarmed.

Ignoring the two bystanders Dumbledore takes a seat on the bed you were residing and starts murmuring incantations. Neither one of them interrupts him as they watch whatever he was mumbling affect your body.

The rigid and stoic position your body held began to relax as your eyes started shutting slowly. Your grip on the photograph loosened and you sank to the bed completely asleep.

"There. She should wake up in the morning feeling refreshed and calm with no memory of the last couple of hours." Dumbledore declares standing up after sliding the photo from your fingers.

"So the depression is gone?" Madame Pomfrey asks, not knowing Severus was wondering the exact same thing.

"No. Not gone. Depression like that is hidden away somewhere deep inside. And this photograph seemed to have brought it up to the surface." Dumbledore answers giving the photograph an amused look.

"Shouldn't she be forced to deal with it then? Instead of hiding it again?" Snape asks, any worry vanishing from his demeanor.

"She will face it when she is ready. And furthermore I would take a look at this before you start judging her Severus." Dumbledore says, placing the photo in his hands. "Good night Madame Pomfrey, Severus."

Dumbledore exits the hospital wing, leaving Madame Pomfrey to her patient and Severus Snape looking down on his not so forgotten past.


	29. Revelations

"What are you doing here?"

Draco looks up to see Harry marching towards him looking as self-righteous as ever. He rolls his eyes as he moves away from your sleeping body. You had missed your first couple of classes and Draco had taken notice. Snape had let him know where you were.

"I could ask you the same question Potter."

Ignoring Draco's annoying drawl, Harry stops at the foot of your bed, glancing down at you. You looked so peaceful to him, and he wondered why you were in here in the first place. It was a pain having to hide your relationship; no one told him anything anymore because to the outside world it was none of his business. And the fact Malfoy had gotten here first made Harry want to curse him all the more.

"What did you do to her?" Harry accuses.

Draco almost laughed at the look Harry was giving him. Like somehow he was the reason you were here in the hospital wing, when in reality he had no more clue then Harry did.

"I didn't do anything Potter. Besides why would you care? You dumped and humiliated her remember?"

Harry flinched at Draco's words. Of course he had dumped her in public, but they were still secretly dating. It was the plan, and also the cause for his immense unhappiness. It didn't even feel like they were together anymore. And not knowing you were here in the infirmary all night did not help matters.

"That's rich coming from the charity case of friendships."

"I get it Potter. You're jealous. I would be too if I were you. Lanae is finally hanging out with someone she can relate with." Draco asserts taking a step closer to Harry.

"You can't be serious. She doesn't actually like you." Harry argues finding it increasingly difficult to remain calm. He was going to lose it and tell him everything if he didn't stop talking, but on the other hand Draco was scum, and should be dealt with.

"That's not what it seemed like Sunday when she stayed the night in my room." Draco smirks, already in a stance poised and ready for a fight.

Without thinking Harry threw a spell at Draco; he ducked causing the spell to miss and ricochet off of a window.

You wake up to a loud crash. Hurriedly you sit up and look around. You were in the hospital wing and Harry was standing in front of your bed his wand out while Draco was crouching on the ground a few feet away pulling out his own wand. Glass was lying everywhere. If you didn't do something Draco was going to try and curse Harry, so you get up and run to Draco.

"You okay?" you ask lending him your hand. He takes it and stands up.

"Better then the window." Draco says brushing himself off.

You turn around to mouth to Harry you would talk to him later, but he was already gone. You stood there for a moment staring at where Harry was standing only moments ago. He didn't even say a word to you, but he was out of harm's way so in the end that was all that mattered wasn't it?

"Potter would take off, coward." Draco mutters. You wanted to defend him, but think better of it. You had to be the bad guy around Draco. Not care about Harry and all that.

"Yeah well it would be swell if you'd fight with him less. Especially when people are lying unconscious only feet from you."

"He started it. I didn't even get to fight really. You woke up and then he was gone." Draco says taking a seat on the bed you had recently inhabited. Now that you weren't worrying about protecting your boyfriend you were able to think straight. And the first thing that didn't make sense was the fact you were here in the hospital wing. The last thing you remember last night was filing stuff for your detention. You had run across Harry's file and some other people's but then as if you had blacked out you remember nothing else. Maybe you had gotten sick and just don't remember.

"So were you sick or something?" Draco asks, breaking the silence.

"I don't really remember actually. But I feel fine now. I wonder where Madame Pomfrey is."

"Who knows, but let's get out of here. This place gives me the creeps." He says grabbing your hand and pulling you towards the exit. You don't struggle, but pull out your wand and wave it towards the window leaving it looking brand new.

__________________________

You were sitting in the room of requirement for two hours until you finally decided that Harry probably was not going to show up. You had asked him at dinner to meet you there after your lesson with Neville. He had mumbled a response so you concluded it was a yes. But apparently the mumble meant no, because he definitely did not show up… or maybe he just got busy or he forgot. No need to get all crazy, he probably has a legitimate explanation.

If he did you didn't find out the next day. Or the next. It was like he was invisible outside of class and you obviously couldn't have a decent conversation with nosy classmates all around inside class so you had yet to speak to Harry at all. Hermione was busy studying and Ron was busy practicing for keeper so neither one of them were of any help to you at all. And you were really getting frustrated. Neville was about the only person you could vent to. So Friday night you told him everything.

He was definitely shocked at first, but after a lot of coaching and some breathing exercises he seemed to calm down.

"That's a lot to take in." Neville sighs leaning back against the wall.

"Yeah I know. But I figured the closer we get as friends the weirder it would be trying to keep everything from you. I mean you still want to be friends right?" you ask hesitantly sitting down next to him.

"Yeah Lanae. You've been a good friend and knowing details from your past isn't going to change that. Besides you're the best teacher here."

You laugh at that compliment. You were glad you could help him, but it was probably your patience that helps him the most. "Well you've got that spell down. I am just glad I could help."

You tidy up the room and head back towards Gryffindor tower. "You know, I could still help you with anything that you might be having trouble with. It gives me extra practice time so technically it helps us both."

"You sure you have time do help me?" he asks sounding forlorn.

"Of course. Besides we do not hang out as often as we should. I'm pretty sure there is a wild side that is itching to get out."

He laughs causing you to laugh causing him to laugh harder and ultimately made a ruckus out of both of you. Holding onto your stomach you lean against the wall to steady yourself. You really didn't even know why it was so funny, but it was seemingly impossible to stop laughing. Or so you thought.

Neville stopped laughing abruptly after a few more feet. Still chuckling yourself and curious as to what made him stop so quickly you follow his gaze. Your laughter caught in your throat. Standing in front of the portrait was Harry and that Cho girl. They weren't doing anything wrong. In fact they were a good foot away from each other, but why did your stomach suddenly grow very very tight?

You and Neville stood in the shadows one hundred feet from them. They were talking too low for you to hear, but it had to be about school stuff right? He was probably helping her like you were helping Neville or something. Right?

As if on cue Cho took a step closer to Harry, placing a hand on his arm. You watch in horror, as the scene in front of you unfold. Neville had hold of your wrist praying you wouldn't do anything rash if this turned ugly.

You kept hoping Harry would brush off her hand, or take a step back or do something besides standing there like an idiot. Quicker then you had expected Cho leans in and kisses him. Not cool. Push her off of you Harry! You think about to bust from your hiding place to kick that raunchy girl's ass. But then Harry pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arm around her waist like he did with you. His other hand running through her hair. He was kissing her back, fervently. You couldn't seem to remember how to breathe.

Neville pulled you away; taking you back the way you had just came. He knew he needed to get you away from there, and get that image out of your head. Only problem is that you already had the image ingrained in your memory, and walking down the dark halls it was all you could really see.


	30. Confrontations

You slept in the room of requirement that night. Hoping that if you didn't have to see Harry you could remain calm. However, once Neville left you completely fell apart. You were lucky you got any sleep at all.

Waking up you feel groggy. Thank heavens it was the weekend; you didn't know what you'd do if you had to sit through classes and deal with your feelings. With a big sigh you roll off the bed. You should probably eat something. Not giving a damn about what you looked like you make your way to the great hall. It was crowded with people chatting and laughing it up. You tried not to glare at all of them. It was safe to say you were not in the best of moods this morning. You took a seat across from Hermione. She was currently the only one there.

"And where were you last night?" she grins, taking a bite of what looked like a cinnamon roll.

"You mean you noticed?" you mumble starting to make a pile of food on your plate.

"Well yes, you are one of my roommates."

"But not a book, so obviously not as important." You say without even looking up at her.

"That is not true Lanae. What is wrong?" she asks sounding worried. You were about to tell her where she could shove her concern when Ron and Neville came and sat down. Ron beside Hermione and Neville next to you.

"How are you doing?" Neville whispers.

"Fantastic." You say, not realizing that your plate was now piled high with food you had no intentions of eating.

"You excited for Halloween and the dance?" Ron asks digging into some sausages.

"Nope." You sigh, giving up on deciding which food on your plate you were going to actually eat.

Ron gives you a strange look but then turns to Hermione. "What about you?"

"I'm not not excited. I would be more excited if…" She tapers off turning a slight shade of red before looking back down at her plate.

"If what?" he asks shoving another piece of meat into his mouth. Maybe it was his general lack of table manners that did it, or Hermione's inability to speak at the moment, but you couldn't help it anymore.

"If you ask her to the bloody dance you idiot." You shout, throwing down your fork.

Hermione was looking at you with an appalled expression. Ron just looked incredibly confused. Neville was chuckling slightly.

"What do you mean I.." Ron begins but you cut him off, your mood taking control again.

"Do you even have a brain? Hermione **likes **you, and has for God only knows how long. It's hardly her fault you have the observation skills of a teaspoon. So stop being a blind git and ask her out already."

Now they all looked shocked, including Neville. Oh boy, maybe you had gone a tad too far…

"Hey guys." You hear. Your blood runs cold. He takes a seat next to you. No one even looks at him; they were all still staring at you.

"Uh, what's going on?" Harry asks, hoping this time he would get more of a response.

"Why don't you ask your girlfriend," Ron whispers angrily, "Maybe you could put her in a better mood."

Neville snorts. You jab him slightly with your elbow.

Harry doesn't say anything; he doesn't even look at you. The awkward silence wasn't getting any better.

"Where were you last night Harry?" Ron asks, trying to break the tension. Yeah way to ignore Hermione completely now you twit. Not to mention this was getting into territory you didn't want to have to deal with yet.

"I was with Dumbledore. He kept me later then I expected."

"Did you learn anything new?" Hermione asks, looking down at her food now.

"Not really. But we can talk about it later." Harry says.

"You didn't do anything else?" Neville asks, leaning forward so he could see around you.

Harry gives him a curious look, still avoiding your gaze.

"No. Nothing else."

"How about some pumpkin juice to go along with your bull shit." You say, picking up your glass and pouring it all over Harry's head. You stand up attempting to walk away when he grabs your arm.

"What the hell was that for?" he shouts, orange liquid running down his face.

"Actually, let's add an entire meal to your bull shit." You yell, grabbing your plate still piled high with food and empty it all over him. You toss the plate to the ground before stomping off, ignoring whoever was calling your name.

You just wanted to get away from him. Though you had to admit throwing food on him did make you feel a little bit better. You were so caught up in your amusement you didn't hear the rush of footsteps behind you. That is until you were shoved into the nearest open door by whoever had chased you.

"What the hell?" you shout whipping around.

Harry was shutting the door behind him, and then turned to glare at you.

"You look cleaner." You say smugly. Hermione must have used a charm to clean him off.

"What was that back there? A poor attempt to let me know you want attention?" he says.

"Hardly." You mutter taking a seat at a desk. You didn't want to be anywhere near this jerk.

"Then what was it?" he shouts, coming to stand in your line of vision.

"I SAW YOU KISSING HER!" you yell standing up. He backs away from you a little, but not enough for your liking. "I SAW YOU! YOU DECEIBTFUL LYING SCUM!"

If you thought he was going to cower away from you out of guilt or something, you thought wrong. He seems to grow taller at your accusations.

"Did you stay the night with Draco last Sunday?" Harry asks in a calm and level voice. That caught you off guard.

"Technically." You spit out.

"And you are calling me the lying scum?"

"Nothing happened between Draco and I! I was drunk and needed a place to crash." You explain.

"You were drunk?!" Now it was Harry's turn to raise his voice it seemed. He even took a step closer to you, and boy did he look livid.

"Nothing happened! It was why I didn't tell you! It would only have caused drama." You shout, matching his level of volume precisely.

"Like nothing happened every other time you were with Draco. Something ALWAYS happens Lanae. You're like a walking Draco magnet!"

"He forced himself on me! And I lost my memories! How can I be responsible for all that?" you shout.

"Yeah? Well I am sick of dealing with _all that_. You go have fun with your new boyfriend because I am done." Harry yells.

"Screw you Harry Potter. Try not to get yourself blown up in my absence." You scream. He slams the door behind him, leaving you alone in the classroom.

You scream very loudly, kicking chairs around the room. So you didn't tell him about last Sunday. So what? Nothing happened. And he could have come to you before macking with some stupid girl. He didn't even apologize. You kick another chair.

"Miss Iverson!"

You turn around and see Professor McGonagle staring at you in shock. You look around the room to see the mess you made. Great.

"Sorry Professor." You mumble. With a wave of your wand the classroom is put back to order and you slump out of the room. Well it was official; Harry and you were over. It seems like a good day to eat a gallon of ice cream.

"Lanae!"

You pause and turn around. Draco was coming up the stairs towards you. You groan, he was the last thing you needed right now. Maybe Harry could show up just to prove his magnet theory.

"Wanted to tell you what you did at breakfast was excellent."

"What did I do at breakfast?" you mutter looking over the banister.

"You know, using Potter as a trashcan." He says poking your side.

"Oh, right."

"I didn't even see him that angry when I told him off in the hospital wing." Draco chuckles. You slowly turn to take a look at him. He was smirking, but there was something different. How had you not noticed it? He seemed smugger then usual.

"Did you tell Potter that I had stayed the night in your room?" you ask slowly. His smirk lessened as he noticed your glare.

"I might have mentioned it."

"Even after I told you not to? Do you not remember that discussion?" you ask coldly.

"Yes, but…"

Your fist connected with his face sending him tumbling backwards his feet flying over his head. You watch as he slides to the bottom of the stairs, his limbs sprawled everywhere.

"That's all I needed to know." You say. You head back up the stairs to the common room. You just wanted to lounge in your bed and read. Maybe getting lost in a book like Hermione would help. Because so far your day has royally sucked. And punching Draco hadn't even helped.

"I forgive you!" Hermione shouts tackling you with a hug as you enter through the portrait.

"So soon?" you ask, actually surprised she was even talking to you considering what you had said at breakfast.

"He asked me to the dance! And I said Yes!" she squeals holding your hand while she jumps up and down. You smile.

"That is so good Hermione. I'm glad I didn't ruin everything."

"At first I was so angry, but once you and Harry left he asked me if what you said was true and then he asked me to go with him!!" she squeals again. Please make the jumping stop you think trying not to show how upset you were. After all she was absurdly happy, and that was good.

"Now explain, what got into you this morning anyways?" she asks taking a seat on the couch.

"Bad night." You mumble looking off into the fire.

"But that doesn't explain…" she begins. You interrupt her not able to keep it inside any longer.

"Harry broke up with me."

"What?!?" Hermione screeches.

"After I confronted him about making out with Cho last night."

"HE DID WHAT!!!" Hermione yells even louder.

"And apparently he did it because I slept in Draco's room Sunday night."

"YOU DID WHAT!!!????"

"Hermione! Calm down." You whisper, shaking her slightly. Everyone was staring at the two of you, and that was the last thing you needed right now.

"Well then let's go somewhere where I don't need to be calm because that is not possible at this point in time." She says very forcefully.

"Fine." You growl taking her hand and pulling her out the portrait only to be stopped short by none other then Harry and Cho. Seriously? Couldn't they be anywhere else?

"Harry. Cho." You nod at each of them, trying to ignore their clasped hands. Just walk around them, you can do it you tell yourself.

"I cannot believe you!" Hermione shouts at Harry the moment she sees him.

"He has every right to be with me." Cho says pulling Harry closer to her.

"Excuse you, but she was talking to Harry." You snap at Cho. She gives you an evil glare. You really wanted to punch her. Or maybe curse her so all her hair would fall out. That would be pleasant.

"Don't talk to her that way. And besides Hermione it's none of your business. Not all girls are afraid of telling the guy they like their feelings."

And in the blink of an eye Hermione punches Harry in the face. He stumbles backwards holding his nose. Cho made a loud squeak running over to help him.

"Come on Lanae." She says grabbing your hand and pulling you away from the scene she had just caused.

"That was unexpected." You mutter to yourself.


	31. The Dance

It wasn't the best week in your book. In fact it was probably one of the worst. Not only had you lost your boyfriend but you also had to see him and his new fling almost everywhere. And the public displays of affection were absolutely awful. They made you want to smash things. In addition to that, Draco was angry with you. Though you couldn't understand why, all you did was punch him in the face. He totally deserved it for going behind your back and telling Harry you stayed the night with him after you explicitly told him not to. He deserved much worse things actually.

So here you were the day before the dance contemplating on if you even wanted to go anymore. At least Hermione was happy. She finally has Ron's attention, and who knows maybe the dance will lead to a relationship of some sort!

"Come on you have to go to dinner and eat something. You've already lost five pounds this week at least." Hermione says ushering you out of your room.

"I've eaten when I was hungry." You argue, which was the truth. It wasn't like you were purposefully not eating.

"Well come on anyways. I want your company." She states. You follow her, all be it grudgingly. Maybe it was all the stress that you had been experiencing but you certainly felt weaker these days. It was probably the stress, you didn't get dumped often, of course that would require having a boyfriend often, and it was obviously taking a toll on your physical state. You should not be this pathetic; he is just a guy.

"You excited then, about tomorrow?" you ask breaking the silence.

"Of course! I wish you were too."

"Cause I have so much to be excited for." You mumble upon entering the great hall.

You follow her to your normal seats hoping that for the brief amount of time you would be there Harry and the leech wouldn't, because apparently there was absolutely no rule that said students had to sit with their relative houses and that meant Cho could be all over Harry only a few feet away from you. And Hermione wondered why you stayed away from the great hall this week.

"If you don't want to go alone I am sure Neville would go with you. I heard his date is sick and won't be better in time."

"I'll think about it." You mutter taking a few bites of salad.

Once Hermione was satisfied with how much you ate she allowed you to head off. She is going to be a great mother one day you think, chuckling slightly on your way out. Your giddiness was short lived seeing as you almost run into the annoying couple making out around the corner.

"Can you guys get a room or something so the rest of us don't have to watch you two suck face all the time?" you ask coldly, interrupting them.

"Then don't look." Cho says snidely.

"It's kind of hard when you're standing in my fucking way." You shout.

"Come on Cho lets go." Harry says hurriedly, grabbing her hand and walking quickly off.

"That's right. Run away you coward." You mumble under your breath heading off towards the common room. If he wasn't the chosen one that was supposedly going to save the world from your father you would have killed him already. The way he taunts you any time he can; he'll even look at you while he's kissing Cho. Who does that?? She's not even that pretty for crying out loud.

"Lanae!"

You turn around and see Neville rushing up to you. He looks out of breath and kind of red.

"Hey, what's up?"

"I heard you don't have a date for tomorrow. Would you mind going with me?" he asks all out of breath.

You could have cursed. Hermione worked way too fast for your liking, but you adored Neville and saw nothing wrong with going with him. Besides he's talked to Harry about as much as you have this past week and you admired him for that.

"I would love to accompany you to the dance. I'm not going as anything special though, just a lowly Slytherin." You chuckle.

"Oh that's just fine. You'll be a fun date no matter what you go as."

"Thanks Neville. Tell Hermione that she didn't have to make you chase after me; I still would have said yes after you had finished eating."

"I'll be sure to tell her." Neville groans walking back the way he had came.

Shaking your head you finish walking to the common room. It wasn't incredibly late but you already felt exhausted. It was like your body was running on empty half of the time now. It was incredibly frustrating.

When you entered your room you almost went to the wrong bed because sitting on yours was a large white box. Confused, you eye it warily. That was nothing of yours, but it was definitely on your bed. On top was an envelope with your name written on it. Cautiously you open and read it.

_May the Queen of Hearts rule us all. _

Well that didn't help you any. You didn't even recognize the handwriting. And who was this queen of hearts? Like Alice in Wonderland? You doubted many people around here would even know of that muggle story. Hermione would though.

You open the box without another thought and gasp. On top was a tiara with red hearts all over it. Putting it to the side you slowly pull out the red dress that was folded neatly between pieces of tissue paper. It was utterly gorgeous. It was a sleeveless floor length ball gown with an empire waist decorated with sparkling beads, with red fabric gathering tightly around the waist and hip area until it flowed gently to the floor where white lace revealed itself. White beading that looked like vines wrapped around the middle of the dress where it went from tight bodice to flowy garment.

You stood there in awe holding the dress up to you. Who had given this to you? Your first thought was Hermione, obviously trying to get you excited about tomorrow, but where would she have even gotten this dress? As if to answer your thoughts Hermione came into the room.

"That is beautiful! Where did you get it!" she exclaims as soon as she sees the dress.

"You should know, you got it for me." You chuckle, lying it on your bed.

"I did no such thing!" she argues.

"Then I have no idea who gave it to me. It only came with this." You say handing her the note.

"They must have meant that this is your outfit for the dance and you're going to go as the queen of hearts and kick everyone's costumed ass!" Hermione squeals.

"Hermione! I don't think I have ever heard you curse before." You chuckle.

"I'm just even more excited now! I'm going with Ron; you're going with Neville. I'm not even worried about who might have sent this to you. I have a good feeling about tomorrow!" she shrieks, louder this time.

You wanted to tell her that she was so excited because it was masking all her nerves and she would probably just want to throw-up tomorrow. But instead you took the dress and hung it up, and then climbed into bed hoping for a dreamless sleep.

______________________

"How do I look?" you ask hesitantly.

"Stunning. Beyond stunning really." Hermione says. She was dressed in her white goddess dress. And she definitely looked like one, a Grecian Goddess that is. Her hair was straightened and hung loosely around her shoulders with a crown of gold leaves on her head. She had found gold lipstick and golden eye shadow. Now she looked gorgeous. You on the other hand felt ridiculous.

"I think you drank one two many butterbeers." You accuse taking another look at your reflection. The dress fit you perfectly, hugging everything in the right way that accented every curve and so forth. It was like it was made for you. Your hair was curled and pulled back so that only little ringlets fell around your face. The tiara resting lightly on the top of our head. You had dark smoky eye make-up with red lip stick and glitter everywhere else. You certainly looked like the queen of hearts, except maybe with a little more fashion sense.

"I think we've made our dates wait long enough don't you?" Hermione giggles. You shake your head. She was a giddy little mess but she was happy, and that was more then you could say for yourself. You were down right nauseated.

Linking arms you head out of your room and down the stairs. Yes, people stopped to stare. Including your two dates. Ron wiggled nervously, and you could tell from a distance he was gulping profusely. Neville was just smiling. He was pretty much awesome. You couldn't help but glance around the room for Harry. Maybe he'd see you and come begging you to forgive him for his dastardly ways. Or maybe he'd just laugh. It didn't matter though because he was nowhere in site.

"Your highness." Neville says, bowing slightly. He was dressed like James Bond. It was really cute. You both watch as Ron bows to Hermione and holds out his hand for her to take. It was like a fairy tale for her, and you were glad you were going to be apart of it.

"He left to pick up his date." Neville whispers in your ear on your way down to the great hall. You were glad you had him to hold on to, walking down stairs in heals was not the easiest thing to do.  
"I figured. Not like it matters." You whisper back.

"Oh it will matter. You look beautiful."

"Thank you Neville. You look pretty handsome yourself." You say, giving him a wink. He blushes slightly as you make your entrance into the great hall.

All of the tables were gone leaving a vast empty space for dancing. There were round tables up against the walls. The ceiling was decorated with floating jack-o-lanterns and old looking chandeliers. Funny mixture. It cast an eerie light everywhere. Other decorations were spread throughout the room. It looked nothing like the place you eat in every day. There was already a rather large crowd, most of whom were nowhere near the dance floor.

At least all the costumes were exciting. You had never seen so much color in the great hall before. You almost busted out laughing when you saw Snape's costume. Apparently all of the professors had to dress up as well. And he was a gravedigger, shovel and all. An orange tabby cat sat next to him. Way to go Professor McGonagall.

"Let's dance." You shout over the music dragging Neville to the center of the floor. You expected him to protest but surprisingly he didn't utter a word. The music was upbeat enough to try and dance around a bit but apparently your dress wasn't made for that type of dancing. The train didn't allow you to move very much so you stuck with swaying side to side.

Maybe it was the dress but for some reason people started dancing with you. It was one big circle of body shaking. And you were surprisingly having a blast. Until you looked over and saw Hermione and Ron sitting at a table staring out at the dance floor. They weren't even sitting by each other. Time to take affirmative action.

"You grab Hermione and I'll grab Ron. We're going to get them to dance." You yell to Neville. He nodded and followed you threw the throng of people. As you approached Ron you noticed Harry standing not too far off. He looked good in his Robin Hood type attire. If only he didn't have to wear those glasses you think chuckling to yourself. And then you saw Cho, dressed in some pretty looking smock thing, laughing it up right next to him. It made your insides boil. Focus Lanae, help Hermione and Ron. Forget about your nonexistent love life. You tell yourself marching over to Ron.

You didn't even ask him to dance. You grabbed his hand and pulled him to the dance floor, ignoring his pleas to release him.

"Now dance." You order, as you begin moving to the beat. He mimics you only after the death glare you give him.

"So why is it that you and Hermione have yet to dance together?" you ask.

"Because I don't know how to." He replies.

"Looks to me like you're doing just fine." You point out. He wasn't that bad and seemed to at least have a sense of rhythm. He grunts in response. You look over to check on Neville and Hermione. She didn't look so sullen anymore, but now to work your magic. Again you take Ron's hand mid jive and pull him over to Hermione.

"Mind if he cuts in?" you yell.

"Be my guest." Neville says disappearing into the crowd.

"Have fun you two." You say pushing Hermione into Ron's arms. You back away looking for Neville but he must be dancing with some other girl. No matter, you could do for a rest.

You head over to the punch table. Something liquid would be nice. As you go to grab the ladle another hand grabs your own. You look up startled.

"Haven't seen you in awhile." He says, looking down at you with his sultry eyes.

"I tend to steer clear of people I humiliate myself in front of." You admit, eyeing his tight fit black jeans, button down black shirt, and thin red tie.

"What if they find you endearing?" he asks smirking. He was totally flirting, and was definitely still holding your hand. You look back into his eyes. He was wearing eyeliner! And his hair was different. It was all disheveled.

"What are you supposed to be?" you ask. Good job, way to flirt back.

"A rock star. Obviously. And yourself?"

"Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland, but you probably don't know who that is." You mutter the last part more to yourself.

"I know. You're beautiful. Dance with me." He suggests.

"Oh I couldn't. This dress, it makes it difficult to move and such other things like that." You ramble. What were you doing, besides sounding completely incoherent. Why did you turn down Art like that? He was gorgeous. And you were completely and totally single. And you just blew your chance at dancing with him. Splendid.

"Like I'm going to let you off the hook that easy." He bends down, grabs a hold of the white lace and pulls. The fabric that had been giving you such a hassle fell to the floor leaving a slit up to your thigh. He folds it up and places it underneath the punch table.

"You can thank me later, come on." He says, ignoring your shocked expression and pulling you to the dance floor. Unconventional? Maybe. Sexy? God yes.

Without the white train you were able to move easily and freely, dancing closer to him then you would have dared. Harry Potter who? Okay so you weren't exactly at that point yet, but at least it made dealing with the Cho slut easier. A couple of songs played and you danced and danced. You enjoyed having his hands on your hips as you both swayed to the music. You were actually having fun. A slow song starts playing, and he was coming in to hold you when a finger taps him on the shoulder.

"May I cut in?"

"Why not." Art sighs, backing away from you revealing Harry.

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**Just wanted to give a special thank you to all who have reviewed. **

**It definitely helps me write more. **

**So hooray for you all. :D**

**Hope you continue to enjoy!!**


	32. Stupid Stupid Stupid

You froze. What were you supposed to do? You watched as Harry took a step closer to you. He wasn't smiling, but he wasn't frowning either. He glided his hands gently around your waist keeping you at an arms distance. You place your hands at his neck, ignoring the urge to choke him.

"Who was that?" he asks, his green eyes sparkling in the dim light. How could he make your heart leap like that? His touch sent shivers to every extremity of your body.

"A friend." You answer. You were going to have to keep up this hard shell of a façade if you didn't want to break down in his arms right there. It was entirely unfair that this one stupid boy could have such a damaging effect on you. An awkward silence fell between you two.

"Where is the leech?" you ask, smirking slightly.

"Cho is talking with some friends."

"I'm surprised she can spare a minute away from you." You say, still in the flippant I-don't-care attitude you were trying to portray.

"I still want to be your friend Lanae." He asserts.

"Do you now? Amazing how I don't care." You snap bringing down your hands. You were done dancing with him. You had to maintain some sort of dignity, but as you tried to back away someone knocked into you pushing you forward into Harry's strong arms. He held you tightly, and against your better judgment you practically melt in his embrace.

"You look gorgeous tonight." He whispers in your ear.

"What are you doing?! Get off of him!" you hear Cho shriek as she stomps towards you two. You stand up straight to glare at her. Tonight was not the night to curse her, not with all the professors milling about. No, you'd have to do it sometime in a dark hallway with no one around.

"Thanks for warming her up. I'll take it from here Potter." A hand comes out of nowhere grabbing yours and twisting you into a couple of spins. You fall back into Draco's arms. Though how you recognized him was beyond you. He had dyed his hair black and had magically induced fangs in his mouth.

"Hello Dracula, I thought you were mad at me." You say standing up.

"Not anymore. Besides looked like you could use some help getting away from the couple from hell."

You gave a last glance where Harry and Cho stood dancing. He wasn't looking at you anymore, and that made you angry for some reason.

"So you can dance?" you ask taking him by the hand to the middle of the dance floor.

"Of course." He smiles suggestively.

"Then let's provide some entertainment." You say.

The music suddenly changed from a slow waltz to a very hypnotic beat. Standing close together you begin to dance. The song was very dark and you could feel the words in every movement. Ramalama Bang Bang. Draco had you twirling about, dipping and spinning. People began to notice and stepped farther back making a little circle for you to dance in. Around and around you went, not stopping until the final pulse had you clasped tightly in Draco's arms.

A loud applause erupted from the crowd. Breathing heavily you and Draco take a slight bow. You couldn't stop smiling even when you saw Harry glaring at you from the sidelines. That got his attention you think giving Draco's hand a squeeze.

"Amazing you two!" Laurel shouts coming over. She was dressed as a pirate all right. A hooker pirate. It just made you laugh.

"Thank you for the dance Lanae; I will see you later." Draco says, winking at you before wrapping his arm around Laurel. She waves goodbye to you as they walk away. You walk over to Hermione and Ron.

"That was some dance." Hermione says in a very serious tone.

"I know right? Who knew Draco could dance." You say taking a seat.

"Who knew you could? But I don't think Harry liked it very much." Ron adds.

"Good. He can jump off a bridge for all I care." You mutter.

"I know you're still hurting Hun, but being reckless like that…" Hermione begins, but you cut her off.

"Reckless? I danced with Draco. That's hardly the same as playing with fire. Besides I'm sick of sulking around. Harry can do whatever he wants. I am threw." You shout getting up to try and find your date.

The rest of the dance went smoothly. Neville and you danced until you were one of the last couple's there. He happily walks you back to the common room prattling on about how much he loves dancing and how wonderful of a date you had been. You were tired, but Neville's excitement was cute. You were glad you went; you did end up having fun. As you reached the portrait you remember that half of your dress was left under the punch table. Crap.

"Neville I have to go back; I left something in the Great Hall." You say stopping him mid-sentence.

"I'll come with you then," he suggests.

"No, it's okay. You go inside, I'll be fine." You argue. You loved Neville, but you needed some peace and quiet. You give him a hug and head back the way you had come. It gave you time to think. You had tried looking for Art the rest of the dance but couldn't find him anywhere. You ran into Harry once but he didn't acknowledge your presence. Not that it bothered you, quitting him cold turkey would be the only way to do this.

The great hall was eerily quite and dark. Very few candles were lit, but you could see fine. You found the lacey part of your dress easily and were making your way back to your warm bed when you saw someone who did not look like they wanted to be seen.

It looked like one of Draco's goons. He was creeping down the hallway, his back to you. In a split instant you made the decision to follow him. You took off your shoes and tiptoed after him. What was he doing?

Rounding a corner you stop abruptly. He was no longer in front of you. Where had he gone? You slowly turn around. In the darkness you see a silhouette, but before you could do anything a spell is thrown at you knocking you out.

When you woke up the first thoughts in your head were, stupid stupid stupid. How stupid could you be? And then you realized you were lying on a bed with a blindfold on and your hands tied behind your back. Not the most comfortable position that's for sure. Someone started fiddling with your restraints so you tried lashing out at them. You had no idea where they were standing, but kicking your legs about every which way might have some damaging affect.

"Calm down Lanae. It's just me." Draco's voice sounded calm and reassuring. He pulled off your blindfold. You were in a dimly lit room with Draco standing over you.

"Well what the hell is going on then?" you yell, glaring at him.

"If you would hold still I would be able to untie you."

Begrudgingly you stop moving long enough for him to release you. You move away from him not completely understanding what was going on.

"This is a test Lanae." Draco says calmly, twirling his wand in his hand.

"A test?" you question, eyeing him warily.

"Yes. To see if you really are who you claim to be."

"I am tired, and just wanted to go to sleep. If you want to play mind games can't we do this tomorrow?" you ask, annoyed. You didn't fear him; you didn't even like him that much. So you weren't worried about whatever this test was. He'd probably try to get you to make out with him again or something.

"You claim to be on your father's side, disowning any and all feelings you once had for Harry Potter, correct?" he asks ignoring your suggestion.

"Yes. That is correct." You growl. What is he playing at?

"Would you be willing to give me a demonstration?"

You give Draco a confused look. What was he talking about? Give a demonstration of what? This was getting ridiculous. "Sure, whatever I can do to get some sleep." You mutter, rolling your eyes.

With a clap of Draco's hands a light shines to the corner of the room. There chained to the wall was Harry. He looked beaten and bruised with a gag in his mouth. He fought the restraints the moment he saw you, letting out a low snarl.

You stood there in complete horror. What were you supposed to do? And how had Harry gotten in this mess? He was supposed to be with Cho.

"You look surprised." Draco mocks.

"Well I am. Not every day you get handed your ex-boyfriend on a platter." You say coolly. Though you felt anything but cool. Your mind was working a mile a minute trying to figure a way out of this predicament.

"All you have to do is use the Cruciartus curse on him. Weaken him a little more, and then we can take him to your dad." Draco says evilly.

"My dad?" you say, turning to stare wide-eyed at Draco.

"He is off the school grounds awaiting this maggot. I wanted to make sure you take part in this so you couldn't come whining to me later how you weren't told, or continue to pretend you're on your dads side."

"Thanks Draco. That was sweet of you." You snap, looking back at Harry. What were you going to do? You couldn't let Draco take Harry to your dad. Even if he had broken your heart because he was a stupid jealous idiot, you loved him, not to mention he's the one that's supposed to defeat your dad. Wait, what? You loved him?? Way to figure this out now Lanae, you chide yourself still trying to formulate a plan.

"Well now's your chance. Take your anger out on him already." Draco taunts. Breathing steadily you pull out your wand that you had attached to your thigh. Holding it steady you aim it at Harry. He was staring at you with his sad green eyes. Damn it.

"Expelliarmus!" you shout turning at the last second on Draco. His wand flies high in the air while his body blasts backward into the wall. You had just ruined your cover. A month of double-teaming Draco all goes up in smoke. Focus! You run over to Harry and break his chains. He falls limply into your arms. You peel off the gag and throw it to the floor.

"Are you okay?" you ask, feeling his forehead.

"Now I am." He answers giving you a small smile. Without thinking you kiss him. You kiss him long and hard. You didn't care if Cho was his girlfriend or not, you had just saved his life. She can suck a fat one.

"Come on, let's get you out of here." You say helping him stand up, only to have him lose his footing and fall down again. He was really weak.

"Okay you lie here, I'll go get help. Once I find the way out of here that is." You mutter, noticing for the first time there was no door to this room. You stand up straight and walk around the walls searching for an opening. Where the hell were you guys? "We might have to wait until Draco wakes up to help us out of here." You say giving up on your search.

"No need for that." Harry says coldly. You turn around quickly seeing Harry standing up perfectly straight aiming his wand directly at you.

"What's going on?" you say backing up away from him.

"Incarcerous!"

Ropes shoot from his wand wrapping around you tightly, causing you to fall to the floor unable to move. You watch in dismay as Harry goes over to give Draco a hand up. What the hell was happening?

"Lanae you failed that test. Badly." Draco says, rubbing his shoulder.

You didn't know what to say. Had this all been a trick?

"Potter isn't the only one that knows how to brew a pollyjuice potion Iverson." Draco adds, very cruelly. Yep, it had definitely been a trick. And like the stupid idiot you were, you fell for it. Hook, line, and sinker.


	33. Used and Abused

**As a word of caution... this chapter is pretty extreme and includes quite a bit of violence. **

**I just wanted to give you a heads up so no one would be shocked or anything.**

**but overall it's a pretty great chapter. **

**go on... see for yourself. ;)**

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"It was my father's idea you know. Orchestrating this whole test." Draco admits, pacing the floor in front of you.

"So my dad isn't anywhere nearby?" you ask, already knowing the answer.

"Of course not. This has not been one of your finer moments Lanae. I am deeply disappointed in you."

"You'll get over it." You snap trying to loosen your bonds. Draco raises his wand at you. You flinch expecting a curse of some sort but instead you are lifted into the air and placed on the bed.

"You can leave for the time being." Draco orders the guy who was pretending to be Harry. He gives a curt nod before pushing open the wall and walking out of the room. You look back at Draco who was now standing at the foot of the bed gazing down at you.

"Why do you fight the inevitable? You know you're father is going to win don't you? One way or another he will get what he wants. And all of the people who serve him will be rewarded." Draco says climbing onto the bed next to you.

"Blah blah blah. Threat threat threat. I know the drill. Can't you release me? Now that you know I'm a big fat liar?"

"Why would I do that when I have you here all to myself." He purrs caressing your face with the tip of his finger.

"So glad I can play a part in one of your masochistic fantasies." You growl trying to squirm away from him. The rope was starting to burn your skin and it hasn't loosened at all.

"Lanae this dress does look beautiful on you, but perhaps it would look even better off."

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" you scream rolling away from him, landing hard on the floor.

"You'll let Potter touch you. I bet if I brought him back in here you wouldn't complain would you?" he asks leaning over the bed. You ignore him trying to inch your way under the bed.

"Would You?" he yells grabbing you by your hair and lifting you into a standing position. You bite your lip to keep from gasping in pain. You shake your head tautly. He slowly slides off the bed and looks down at you. You were pressed against the wall under his body. "One day you'll forgive me." He says softly, brushing your hair out of your eyes.

"Fat chance." You say, glaring at him. He smirks and then kisses you roughly. Your arms were useless tied to your sides, your legs were useless tied together, and all you could do was move your head. So you did, his lips sliding down to your neck where he proceeds to suck and bite you. You wince in pain, only wanting him to stop.

"You brought this on yourself you know. No one should ever be allowed to be as captivating as you. You're on the wrong side." He whispers into your ear. He then places his lips firmly on your own, pressing down harder then before, moving his tongue quicker then before. And in that instant, that momentary instant it was like you could feel his passion for you. It flowed through him and into you, causing you to kiss him back. You wanted more.

Realizing your cooperation Draco released the ropes and you automatically pushed him on the bed, climbing on top of him. His hands were roaming every part of your body they could touch. Your own hands feeling his body underneath you. And then just as quickly as you felt that burning desire it disappeared, leaving you enraged. You pull back your fist and smash it against his face. You pull back again; ready to hit him once more when you fly off of him and collide into the wall, crumpling to the floor. You felt weaker then ever as you look back up to the bed.

"Sneaky Lanae. I'll give you points for that one." Draco says sitting up rubbing his jaw. His wand was pointed at you as he slid off the bed. The door opened then and in stepped Harry. Or whoever he was.

"I heard a commotion." He says eyeing you lying on the floor.

"I took care of it. Keep an eye on her will you? I need to step out for a moment."

"Will do." He nods, smirking evilly at you. It didn't feel right, that kind of look on Harry's face.

"I'd tie her up again if I were you." Draco suggests before leaving you alone with the other guy.

"Aren't you going to do as Draco says?" You snarl, standing up slowly.

"I like a challenge." Harry says, eyeing you up and down.

You didn't take time to formulate a response. You just ran straight ahead hoping you could make it out the door. For the second time that night your hair felt like it was going to be ripped from your head, as you fly back once again crashing to the floor.

"Not very smart Lanae." He says, chuckling evilly.

"Who are you?" you shudder backing away from him.

"Harry Potter." He replies, and in two steps he is standing in front of you. He leans down and picks you up by your neck, pushing you against the wall. You claw at his hand; he was cutting off your air supply.

"Do you not like me?" he asks, dropping you. You land on your feet, but double over not being able to get oxygen to your lungs fast enough.

"I asked you a question." He growls pushing you to the ground. You hit the floor hard. You turn over and look back up into Harry's eyes, his beautiful green eyes, only to see hatred.

"I love you." You mumble cringing away as he jumps on top of you, pinning you to the ground.

"I told you that you wouldn't be able to hide the truth. I knew you were lying. That you love Harry Potter. Stupid stupid girl. But you'll enjoy kissing me won't you? Kissing me in this body would be ecstasy for you wouldn't it?"

You stared up at him not knowing what to say. This guy was crazy, completely crazy. You felt like a frail Barbie doll; you couldn't even seem to struggle anymore. What was going to happen to you? Harry's hand started sliding up your thigh.

"You like this don't you?" he whispers in your ear.

"No. Please. Don't." you cry out.

"You know you want me." He says laying his entire body weight on top of you. His lips came down on yours as his hand came to rest on your chest. He stuck his tongue in your mouth at the same moment he tried pulling down your dress. And you bite down hard. So hard that you tasted his blood in your mouth.

He pulls away howling in pain. You try to push him off of you, but he recovered from the shock of his tongue almost being bit in two and slaps you hard across the face.

"You bitch!" he shouts standing up.

You tried to crawl away; you saw your wand lying only five feet from you. If you could reach that you would be free. What you weren't expecting was a foot ramming into your stomach knocking all the wind out of you.

"You think you are so much better then the rest of us." He shouts down at you, kicking you again, harder this time. You were flat on your back, looking up at Harry screaming down at you. It was your worst nightmare come true. You curl into a tighter ball with each kick and stomp. You lost all track of time, not knowing how many times his foot connected with your body. All you knew was that you were coughing up blood, screaming for him to stop.

"Not so special now are you?" He says coolly, taking another firm punt at your ribs. You knew one had broken that time; the tears flowing freely you cry out in pain.

"Enough!" you hear through your sobs. Another blow lands across your face, blood flying from your now broken nose.

"I said ENOUGH Luke!" you hear again. Luke? No, it was Harry. Harry was hurting you. You dare a glance upward. Through your blurry vision you see Draco marching over looking livid. Harry was just laughing; he was laughing as he looked down at your pathetic existence.

"Get Out! Now!" Draco shouts bending over you.

"Whatever you say, boss." Harry says, chuckling on his way out.

"Lanae? Are you okay?"

You wanted to laugh, that question was funny, but you cough up some more blood instead. It was getting harder to breathe.

"This wasn't supposed to happen." He says softly, touching your cheek. You wince in pain. You must have a bruise. You close your eyes, wanting to fall asleep to the rhythm of his breathing.

"Stay with me Lanae."

A loud blast causes you to flinch, which only causes you more pain.

"Get away from her!"

"Oh My God Lanae!"

"Bloody Hell."

Somehow you knew people were here to help you now. And with that final thought you drift off to sleep.


	34. A Bout of Confusion

"You shouldn't have cursed him."

"Do you see what he did to her? Would you like a closer look at her broken ribs and bruised face?"

"I see it. But now was not the time to go all noble. Besides you were the one beating her up on the inside."

"She made that choice on her own!"

The angry voices continued to get louder. All you wanted to do was sleep. Sleep was nice. Maybe if you asked politely they would go away. You moved slightly, trying to get in a more comfortable position but found it impossible considering your body was still in an immense amount of pain. You let out a small groan. The bickering stopped.

"Lanae, are you awake?"

Was that Hermione? She sounded so worried. Were you really that damaged? You felt that way of course, but did you look it?

"You were loud." You mumble opening your eyes slightly. She was leaning over you, her eyes red from crying. Oh geez, you had probably ruined her night with Ron. You were really a piece of work.

"Sorry. We didn't mean to wake you." She soothes touching your hand lightly. A sharp memory pierces your vision. You see a foot coming towards you. You held your hand up to shield your face. You gasp, taking a quick intake of breath.

"Where is Draco?" you ask shutting your eyes firmly.

"He's unconscious at the moment. But don't worry, he is far away from you, and can't hurt you." Hermione says.

"He didn't do this." You mutter feeling sleep overtaking you again.

"What?"

"Who was it then?"

"He was leaning over your body!"

You couldn't discern which were whose voices. You wanted to reply to each of them, but the only thing you kept seeing in the darkness behind your eyelids was Harry. Harry pulling your hair and slapping you. Flinging you about like a rag doll.

"Harry did it." You whisper as you let sleep engulf you once again.

________________________________________________________________

"Hello daughter."

Your eyes snap open. You were lying on the floor in the middle of a white room. You instinctively jump up searching for the body that went with the voice. You felt lithe and healthy. No pain stabbing at every corner of your body. Weren't you supposed to be in agony? You must be dreaming, and now _he _was in your head again. You spin around to see your father stepping out of the darkness, snakelike features and all. You were never going to get used to how hideous he was.

"Why are you here?" you ask.

"To inform you that if you decide to remain on this path you have chosen I will have no qualms in killing you. You did not manifest like I thought you would, and thus are of little importance to me. I was being nice when I gave you the option to join me. And look what defiance has gotten you. Nothing." His tone was cruel and unnerving. He wasn't smirking or mocking you; he was just telling you the truth.

Your mind was running slower then normal as you tried to recall why he was here in your head telling you this. Why had you expected pain when you opened your eyes? You had been brutally beaten. That sounded right. And they hadn't used magic. You saw Draco's face leaning over you, but he didn't do it. No it was someone else. An intense and horrible feeling spread through you as you saw your attacker. It was Harry? Why was Harry hurting you? The memories were fuzzy, but you could have sworn it was him. What had happened?

You look back up into Voldemort's cold eyes. What did he know? You were so confused.

"Someone's tampered with my memory." You say. It was the only logical explanation. Harry wouldn't hurt you. Not like that. He was using Cho to hurt you, not physical violence.

"You don't say? It would seem to me that you are weaker then I ever anticipated. It is a shame. I thought your mother was the perfect choice. I was obviously wrong, and I don't say that lightly. I am hardly ever wrong." He says. What was he talking about?

"Get out of my mind." You command. You didn't have to put up with his insults in your own head, even if they did make absolutely no sense. Besides if you were going to piece together what had happened to you, it wasn't going to happen with him around.

"Foolish child. Do not attempt to tell me what to do. You will never…" but you didn't wait to find out what you would never be able to do. You were annoyed, confused, and angry.

"I said Get OUT!" you scream.

_________________________________________

You sit up straight in your bed, ignoring the dull ache in your chest. The sun was streaming in through the windows heating up the hospital wing. Your vision was blurry as if your eyes hadn't been used in awhile. You were wearing a pair of your pajamas. You test each of your limbs, stretching and bending them. For the most part you felt rather decent. Your ribs were still sore and it effected your breathing, but other then that you felt almost one hundred percent better.

Now to stand up. You lean your legs over the bed until your feet were planted firmly on the floor. You lean forward and stand up, only to collapse to the floor. So that didn't work. You use your arms to pull you back on the bed, only putting minimal weight on your feet. What was wrong with them? You felt fine. Wiggling your toes to prove it. So why couldn't you stand?

"Lanae! You're awake!"

You look up from your useless legs to see Neville running at you. You grin. He looked happy. Behind him were two more people. Hermione and Harry. The site of him caused your stomach to clench tightly. How is it that your brain was working so slow you hadn't even thought about why you were in the hospital wing in the first place? You were so focused on checking out your body you hadn't given your dream or Harry a second thought. Could you not compartmentalize anymore?

"Get Snape." You say stoically, fighting the fear that was growing inside you with every step Harry took.

"What did she say?" Hermione asks.  
"She said to get Snape." Neville repeats looking confused as he sits down next to you.

"She wouldn't ask for that. She hates Snape." Harry's voice says, filling your head with sickening memories.

"Get him. Please." You beg tugging on Neville's shirt.

"Okay. I will." He nods standing up.

You hold completely still as you watch him leave you. Hermione comes to take Neville's spot, feeling your forehead.

"She feels fine." She says to Harry who takes a seat in front of you. You couldn't bring yourself to look at him. The hairs on your arms were standing straight up you were so terrified. But it felt wrong. You loved Harry. You knew that now. But this anxiety was so real. And the memories… None of it made sense. There was an entire blank chunk of your memory that you had no recollection of starting at the end of the dance. So for now you would just have to keep your emotions at bay until Neville brought back Snape.

"I can't stand." You mutter looking back down at your legs.

"That makes sense, you've been out for almost a week. Your legs just need to get used to being used again is all." Hermione says in that motherly voice she sometimes gets.

"Here, let me help you." Harry says grabbing your hand. You scream loudly jerking away from him. His touch had sent sparks up your arm and down your spine at the same time sending some message to your stomach giving you the overwhelming need to puke.

"Stay away from me Harry!" you shout. You couldn't think straight and it felt like you were hyperventilating.

"Step away from her Potter. You two Granger." Snape's voice somehow calmed you down, making it easier for you to breathe. The two of your friends stand and walk away looking both offended and confused.

"What's wrong Lanae?" he asks approaching your bed. You had never seen him so concerned before, but instead of dwelling on it you explained what was going on.

"Someone has tampered with my memory. All I keep seeing is Harry hurting me. I can't see before that, and I can barely think about more then one thing at a time."

"The three of you get out." Snape orders without taking his eyes off you, taking out his wand.

"But.." Harry was going to argue.

"I said get out!" Snape growls, giving the three of them a deathly glare. He waited until the doors had shut behind them before he turns back to you.

"This is going to be uncomfortable, but it is necessary. Just relax." Snape says raising his wand. You close your eyes and take a deep breath. A second later your memories were being played back to you. You saw and heard everything that had just happened, the dream, and then Harry beating the crap out of you. And then it stopped abruptly, like hitting a wall. You open your eyes looking in Snape's blank face.

"You were given a potion to block a good chunk of your memory." He explains pocketing his wand.

"Can you fix it?" you ask hesitantly.

"Of course. I have an antidote in my office. I'll be right back." His billowing cape of doom disappearing behind the door after him. "Don't you dare go in there in my absence Potter. Any of you." You hear him shout.

You sat on the bed clutching your knees. Yes, the way Snape was treating you was a tad weird. You hated each other; your memory didn't get messed up that much. But somehow you knew he would help you without any qualms. It was like you trusted him more then Dumbledore even. Whoa hold up. Did you actually just think that? What was going on with you? That potion must have really destroyed some brain cells.

The doors burst open revealing Snape striding back in. He had a smoking vile in his right hand. Anything smoking was not pleasant. You were not looking forward to having to this antidote.

"This is going to be more then just uncomfortable. I am afraid this will be painful, but it will fix your memory and any concentration problems." He explains handing you the vile of putrid smelling junk.

"Thank you Professor." You say, before tossing the potion to the back of your throat. It tasted horrible, and then came the headache. But more then a headache even, it felt like a bomb had exploded inside your head. And just as soon as it began it ended. You look up at Snape's expectant expression.

"I remember. Everything." You say. And you did. It wasn't Harry that hurt you; it was Luke. Draco had concocted the plan. He gave Luke the pollyjuice potion to trick you into proving you weren't really on your dad's side. So it explained your dad showing up in your head, but still didn't clarify what the hell he was talking about.

"Good." Snape says, breaking you out of your walk down memory lane. You look up at him. What were you supposed to say now? Thanks for helping me… you can go back to hating my guts now. It didn't sound very grateful in your head, so an awkward silence prevailed.

Maybe you could ask him what you missed in class. No sooner had the thought crossed your head than Snape turned around and headed out the hospital wing without saying another word.

"Can we see Lanae now?" you hear Neville ask. You heard no audible reply from Snape, but the three of them came on in anyways.

"You sure she won't hex me?" Harry whispers to Hermione not sure if he should really be there.

"I think Snape helped her remember." Hermione answers.

"I can hear you guys." You say, a huge grin forming on your face.

"Then you can hear how you scared us all to death." Neville says, smiling even though there was a slight seriousness to his voice. The three of them sat on the bed with you.

"Sorry about accusing you by the way Harry." You apologize finally able to look him in the eye. He gives you a small smile.

"Don't worry, no one took your allegation seriously. Draco was even set to be expelled and everything until the Minister of Magic overturned that ruling."

"But theoretically he didn't do this to me." For some reason you felt an extreme amount of relief knowing Draco wasn't gong to be expelled, though you didn't know why. He was the ultimate reason you had gotten your face smashed in. It was his plan that had gone wrong.

"Who did? Draco would never say." Harry asks, not realizing his anger was shining through his composed demeanor.

"I don't know who it was." You lie. You knew without a shadow of a doubt if you told your friends who had done this to you, and that it had been a fellow Gryffindor of all people, they would do something dreadful. "So you guys know what happened then?" you continue wanting to change the subject.

"Yeah, we know. Well minus the parts where Draco was out of the room. Harry kind of cursed his confession out of him." Hermione states. You look at Harry surprised. Why would he have been there?

"How did you find me anyways?"

"I went out searching for you when you didn't come back, and near the Great Hall this guy stopped me and said he'd help me find you. I didn't believe that he could, but then he explained how he had given you the dress and it had a tracking spell on it. He gave me the incantation to find it, and it led us right to you." Neville explains.

"Do you know who the guy was?" you ask, wondering who had been your ultimate rescuer.

"He said his name was Artemis."


	35. Friendly Desires

"Who the hell is Artemis?" you ask.

"We thought you'd be able to tell us." Neville answers.

You stare at the three of your friends not knowing what to say. You had no recollection of ever meeting anyone named Artemis. Ever. And yet he pretty much saved your life. Not to mention he gave you that gorgeous dress for the dance. Who was this guy?

"I don't like him." Harry announces, breaking the thoughtful silence.

"You've never even met him." You point out.

"Neither have you apparently. A guy you don't even know gave you a dress that had a tracking spell on it. Either he knew what was going to happen that night in which case he was probably in on it, or he's stalking you. Both scenarios I don't like. Thus I don't like him." Harry states defiantly.

"Or he might have noticed how depressed I was and decided to do something about it. Maybe the tracking spell was for a romantic rendezvous later. Did you ever think of that?"

The two of you glare daggers at each other. You weren't about to let Harry know that his theories were a lot more probable then yours. Why was he even here anyways? Didn't he have Cho to look after and, hopefully, get mono from?

"Thanks for checking up on me and giving me your unwanted opinion, but I'm sure you have to get back to the leech sometime. Might as well be now." You say coldly.

"Actually, Cho broke up with him. He kept spending all his time here instead of with her." Hermione states.

"Hermione!" Harry shouts.

"What? She deserved to know. And it wasn't like you were going to tell her."

"Because it's none of her business!" he argues.

"Of course it is! Or are you forgetting the fact that you happen to admit that…"

"Shut up Hermione!" Harry interrupts standing up this time.

"I was just saying." Hermione shrugs, giving you a wink. You giggle. You had enjoyed their little banter.

"I need your help with the herbology homework Hermione, let's go to the library." Neville chimes up. You had almost forgotten he was there with how quiet he was.

"Herbology Neville? You need help in your best subject?" she asks in a disbelieving tone folding her arms across her chest.

"But this new plant is really really stumping me, come on." He says dragging her towards the exit.

"That was subtle." Harry sighs, sitting down next to you this time.

"That's Neville. He has a certain finesse when it comes to subtleties." You joke, causing Harry to crack a smile. Why did he have to give you butterflies like that every damn time? And how were you supposed to take this new news about Harry staying by your side most of the time this past week? You couldn't just let him run back into your arms. Not after how big of a dick he was to you. You were going to make sure he suffers a whole lot.

"I'm glad you're okay Lanae." Harry whispers touching your hand lightly. You felt the heat rush through your body like wild fire.

Okay maybe he'd only suffer a little bit. No wait. You have to concentrate and tell him what you need to say. You pull back your hand and take a deep breath.

"Thank you. But this doesn't change anything. You broke up with me for a stupid reason. All be it I wasn't completely honest, but seriously? You were so stinking jealous of something that wasn't even there. And then you go out with that ho-bag and flaunt it in front of me every chance you get? Did you ever stop and think about the pain you'd be causing me? No I don't think you did." You say, your anger growing stronger with every word. You were back to wanting him to suffer a whole lot. And it had been maybe thirty seconds. Maybe you were PMS'ing.

"I'm not asking you to give me another chance. I blew it. I know that now. But I do want to be your friend." Harry pleads, taking your hand in his. Why did he have to touch you? And why did it have to calm you so? You stare into his eyes, wishing for the briefest second that he would kiss you. Which was probably why your eyes wandered down to his lips. His soft sweet lips.

As if reading your mind he leans forward and kisses you. Pressing his lips firmly against your own. Your initial shock gave way to some hidden desire as you run your fingers through his hair pulling him closer. You break away suddenly and slap him hard across the face.

"I deserve that." Harry sighs, his cheek stinging from the blow.

You keep your eyes locked on him. Damn right he deserved that. Yet it didn't stop you from wrapping your fingers behind his neck and pulling him back towards you. Your lips meeting for a second time. The fire that burned within you was alive and ached for a way to be released. Harry must have felt the same way because as his tongue explored your mouth, caressing your lips gently, his body found its way on top of your own. It didn't matter what had happened between you. Kissing him was right. You loved him. He could tear your heart in two and you'd still love him; somehow you knew it was the truth.

You gasp when Harry's hand puts too much pressure on your ribs. He pulls away abruptly looking worried. The pain subsides quickly, but gives you time to think clearly. Something Harry seems to prevent whenever he touches you.

"I'm sorry." He says. Though you didn't know exactly what he was apologizing for. Kissing you? Hurting you? Everything that happened recently? All of the above?

"Help me stand up." You suggest, changing the subject. You didn't know what to say yet. Obviously you couldn't explain to him that you love him and you would rather cut off your foot then be without him. Boys don't react well to the L word. Harry wraps his arm around your waist and lifts you up into a standing position. He sets you down lightly, slowly letting you rest your weight on your legs. Leaning only slightly on him you remain standing on your feet.

"Miss Iverson, you're awake. And standing I see! Very good. I think you'll be released tonight. Nice job Mr. Potter, you could do well as a healer." Madame Pomfrey exclaims upon seeing Harry standing next to you helping you up.

"Only if all my patients were you." Harry whispers in your ear. You giggle slightly about to sit back down.

"Why don't you see to it that she can walk around. I'll be right back to do a thorough examination." Madame Pomfrey says leaving you two alone once again.

"You heard the woman. Let's get you walking." Harry says taking hold of your hand and tugging you forward. You lose your balance almost immediately falling into his out stretched arms.

"You did that on purpose." You accuse.

"I couldn't help it." He winks. He assists you around the infirmary without any other incident. You walked back to your bed all by yourself.

"About Artemis…" Harry begins.

"I don't want to discuss Artemis with you." You cut him off.

"Fine, what about the kiss then?"

You spin around not expecting him to be standing so close to you. If you leaned forward you could even kiss him again. Wait, no. Keep your hormones in check for crying out loud.

"I don't want to talk about that either. In fact you're still on probation mister. High level maximum security probation." You state poking him in his chest.

"And you'll punish me if I get out of hand?" he whispers brushing his fingertips across your forearm. Did your breathing just get heavier? Was Harry seducing you?

You didn't have time to ponder any of this because for the third time his lips met yours. He wrapped his arms around you and pulled you deeper into his embrace. His kisses were softer then before. More delicate, as if he might break you. His skin was so smooth and his hair was so soft. You couldn't feel enough of his body against you.

"Ahem."

You and Harry breakaway looking sheepish. Who had caught you now? There standing at the entrance was Dumbledore looking quite amused. You could feel the color rise in your cheeks as you step farther away from Harry.

"No cause for alarm. I was young once too." Dumbledore says heading over to where you two stood. The thought of Dumbledore young was almost comical and made it easier to look at Harry again.

"I am glad to see you are well enough for visitors Lanae, but I have to ask that you, Harry, give us a moment alone."

Harry nodded curtly, but with a small smile on his lips. He gives you one last long look before heading out the doors. "See you later Lanae." He had whispered so quietly you wondered if he had said it at all.

"Young love, so new and fresh," Dumbledore comments taking a seat on the adjacent bed. You didn't know what to say. New and fresh weren't the adjectives you'd use, more like exhilarating and reckless, but you weren't about to tell Dumbledore that.

"As wonderful as your recovery is I am here on other business." Dumbledore's tone had turn from pleasant to serious.

"Sir?" you question not having any idea what other business he could be referring to.

"You will now take up Occlumency lessons with Professor Snape."

"Excuse me, but what?" you stutter. Surely you had heard wrong. Snape had been almost amiable to you today, but whose kidding who here, how long was that going to last? Everyone knows he hates your guts.

"Voldemort knows the truth now, as do any and all of his followers. You need to set up as many defensives as you can. Occlumency will be one of the many. They will be important in these times ahead."

The dream with your father echoed through your memory at these words. What had your father been talking about?? Manifestation and defiance? Would Dumbledore know what he was talking about? But what was Dumbledore even talking about? What happened to you had nothing to do with your mind... if anything you should be taught advance spells and curses or maybe even some advanced martial arts. Not how to block one's mind against nosy intruders, i.e. your father. You can deal with him. At least you have so far.

"And I want you to take heed, the boys that hurt you have not been punished properly but that does not mean you should take matters into your own hands Lanae. Be better then them." He adds, not noticing your shocked silence or confused expression.

You hadn't even thought of revenge. Then again you were too busy fixing your memory and making out with Harry to think of anything else. Revenge would be sweet. And so would gratitude… maybe Dumbledore knows this Artemis guy.

"Well that would be all, if you have any questions my office is always open." Dumbledore says, standing to go.

"Um Headmaster do you know a guy named Artemis?"

"Artemis Hunter?" Dumbledore asks, looking for the first time somewhat curious.

"Is that the only Artemis in Hogwarts?"

"Yes, though I was not aware you two knew each other." He points out, probably more to himself then to you.

"Well technically we don't. I don't know him that is. But do you think you could tell me where I could find him?"

"Alas I do not know all the students whereabouts inside this castle, but if I were you I would check the Slytherin common room when you are released."

He must have realized you were too stunned to speak because he gave his farewell and left you alone on your bed. Slytherin? How had you not met him? You had only been hanging with the Slytherins for what was it? Like three or four weeks now. You were practically one of them and yet no Artemis anywhere in your memory bank. But he knew you…

Maybe Harry was right; it was kind of creepy. Then again he had helped Neville find you. He had saved you from Luke. Luke. Now there was someone you wanted to exact revenge on. That bastard.


	36. Civil & Strange

"You have to do what?" Hermione asks sitting in front of you at breakfast the following morning.

"Take Occlumency lessons with Snape." You repeat, not understanding why she was so upset by this. Hermione gives Harry a semi-pitied look before looking back at you. What was that about?

"I hope you have better luck then Harry did." Ron says as he sits down, grabs a sausage and shoves it in his mouth.

"You took lessons with Snape?" you ask Harry ignoring the obvious elbow jab Ron received from Hermione.

"Yes." He admits.

"And?" you prod.

"It went horribly wrong." Hermione exhales.

"I am so glad I have the two of you to explain experiences in my life because I am obviously incapable of doing it myself."

"Then explain. Pretend they didn't say a word." You say giving him an encouraging smile.

"Well, I took lessons with Snape and they went horribly wrong." Harry says, causing all of you to break into laughter. In the midst of inhaling a sharp pain stabs through your lungs leading to a terrible coughing fit.

"You okay?" Ron asks.

"Yeah. Just a little bit of pain is all."

"I don't think you should be going to classes yet." Harry says, looking worried.

"I will be just fine. I have already missed a week of classes; I don't need to miss anymore."

"You sound like Hermione." Ron interjects in between two mouthfuls of eggs, earning him yet another jab from Hermione.

"Fine by me, and while we're on the subject of a very studious student," you say giving Hermione a wink, "I want to get to Potions early."

"She is turning into you!" Ron accuses turning on Hermione.

"Oh shut up. I need to talk to him about the whole Occlumency thing. I will see you guys later." You chuckle, getting up from the table. Harry grabs your hand as you turn to leave, and brings it to his lips. You would never be able to get enough of his touch. And don't even get you started on his lips, or his eyes, or any other part of his body for that matter.

"Be careful." He whispers letting your hand fall down back to your side.

"I will." You reply.

There was so much going on in your head as you walked down to the lower part of the castle. There was the fact you were no closer to finding out the whole Artemis thing then you were yesterday. Harry and you were what exactly? These extra lessons with Snape were going to be an absolute joy. You still had no idea what your father was rambling on about in that dream of yours. And you had yet to see Draco or Luke. What would happen when you did see them? You had no idea.

You didn't think twice about sauntering into the Potion's classroom; it was your first class of the day and you were early. Who else would come early to class? And that's when you saw Draco leaning against the wall besides the door leading to Snape's office with his eyes closed. You froze.

The door shuts behind you causing just enough noise to warrant his attention. His gaze locks on you. And then silence. A multitude of feelings were coursing through you all at once. Fear, anger, loathing, bitterness, pity, passion, sadness, and those were just the ones you could single out. You couldn't even explain most of them. Shouldn't you just be mad? He was the one who dragged me into that mess in the first place you think, but he was also the only who stopped Luke. He was worried about you. He left you in there alone with him. How was he supposed to know Luke was insane? He tricked you.

"Enough!" you shout out loud clenching your head.

"Lanae, are you okay?" Draco asks. You glance up to see him take a step or two forward, but stop under your glare.

"We aren't friends anymore. You can stop pretending to care." You say coldly, standing up straight.

"I didn't mean for him to hurt you." He says stoically.

"Maybe not, but in the end what does it matter? You found out what you needed and now my Dad can kill me. Simple as that." You were growing more confident. You walk towards him.

"That doesn't have to happen. If you just…"

You cut him off, "No. Look Draco, we we're brought up two different ways. I don't hate you if that makes you feel any better. At least right now I don't. But I will not turn my back on my mom or anyone else I care about, just like you won't turn your back on your family. So you can go back to resenting me, besides if I start dating Harry again it'll only make it easier for us to go back to the way things were."

"And how was that?" he asks icily.

"You hating me. And I hating you. Our friendship a distant memory." You say calmly. You felt a twinge of sadness saying so, but you knew that whatever good there is that lives inside Draco would not be brought out by you. I don't have that kind of power, you think, chuckling to yourself.

"Were we friends?" he asks in an almost mocking tone. You stand beside him against the wall.

"Yeah, I think we were." You say, knowing you were speaking the truth. As much as he annoyed and angered you, in a weird kind of way he was your friend.

"I didn't expect you to be so civil." Draco admits, smirking at you.

"There will be plenty of time for us to be uncivilized later."

"Starting when?" he asks looking more amused by the second.

"As soon as Snape opens this door?" you suggest matching his smirk.

"Sounds good to me."

And as if on cue the door opens. Snape doesn't say anything before heading back to his desk. Neither Draco nor you move.

"Well go." You say.

"Ladies first." He argues, bowing in a mocking way.

"And have you listening in? I think not." you scoff, folding your arms over your chest.

"Like what you have to say matters to me? You're probably here because you didn't understand last weeks potion."

"And you're probably here brown nosing. No one likes a teacher's pet." You state.

"And no one likes a know-it-all." He adds.

"I am not a know-it-all!"

"Obviously. But your friend Granger is." He chuckles.

"WOULD ONE OF YOU JUST GET IN HERE!" Snape growls.

Draco and you begin to laugh together. So much for hostility. You didn't want to get Snape any more annoyed so you try to take deep calming breaths and make your way into his office. Draco grabs your hand causing you to turn back around and face him. He was back to his serious self, no hint of a smile anywhere.

"You be careful Iverson." He whispers.

"You too Malfoy." You say, giving his hand one final squeeze before disappearing through the doorway. You shut the door behind you and look up to see Snape rolling his eyes at you.

"What?" you ask taking a seat in the chair in front of his desk.

"You are so much like your mother it's uncanny."

You stared at him not knowing what to say. That was probably the biggest compliment anyone could ever give you. And you had never expected Snape to be the one giving it. But then again, maybe it wasn't meant as a compliment. Maybe Snape and your mother hated each other.

"Why are you here?" he asks, breaking the silence.

"Um.. I needed to know when these Occlumency lessons are going to be."

Snape slams his fist on the desk and takes out his wand. He flicks it at the door almost violently. You hear a small squeal outside and then nothing.

"Do not mention those lessons ever again. If need be call them remedial potions." He says angrily, putting his wand back down.

"But I am not stupid. I am doing just fine in your class." You whine.

"Even so, no one can know, understand?" he orders.

"Fine. When are my remedial potion lessons then?"

"Thursday nights at 7. Or would you like to whine about that too?"

"No. But thanks for asking." You snap as you stand up, march over to the door, fling it open and continue to march to a seat. He thinks he is so cool, with his stupid black cloak and almost complete lack of social skills. Your mother and him were definitely never friends. Definitely not.

____________________________________

It may have seemed like you didn't miss any school because you were asleep for a week, but you did. And because of your absences you were behind. Extremely behind. So by the end of the day it was no wonder why you were more irritable then ever. You'd think the professors would have some pity on you and not require make-up work, but no. You had five papers due next week, and two exams this Friday.

"I will be in the library for the next month. That is when I am not in class or debating killing myself in remedial potions." you say, jabbing the Jell-O violently with your fork.

"What did that Jell-O ever do to you?" Neville asks sitting down beside you.

"It exists." You mumble tossing down your fork.

"She was just lamenting on her knew found lack of free-time." Hermione states, giving you a sad look.

"Well I can help you with your Herbology paper." Neville says happily.

"Thanks Neville. I owe you. But now I need to get to the library."

"And I can figure out who this Artemis guy is." Hermione adds, standing up with you.

"I got a last name. Hunter. Artemis Hunter. And he is in Slytherin." You had forgotten that bit of information. Not that you would have time to pursue it. You two head towards the library.

"Well that might help. Oh no…" Hermione exclaims. You follow her gaze ahead to the group of students standing in a circle in the middle of the hallway. You saw a flash of blonde hair. Draco. Great, what is he doing now?

You two rush forward to find Draco and Harry encircled by the encompassing students with their wands pointed at each other. Why is this not surprising?

"You belong with your parents. Six feet under solid earth." Draco shouts.

At least they aren't fighting about me, you think trying to wade through the students.

"Even then, she still wouldn't be with you." Harry yells back.

Okay, you take that back. They were fighting over you. And trying to get closer to them was getting ridiculous. Didn't these people understand that if Draco or Harry's spells miss that they would hit one of them?

"You wouldn't know for sure though because you'd be dead." Draco mocks.

Harry throws a spell at him, that Draco somehow blocked at the last second.

"Nice try Potter." Draco smirks, throwing a spell of his own. Harry blocks it, but you weren't about to watch either one of them continue this charade.

"MOVE OUT OF MY WAY!!!" you scream pushing at least three people to the side stepping into the middle of the ring, in between the two boys.

"Look who decided to grace us with her presence." Draco smiles wickedly at you.

"Leave her out of this." Harry retorts.

"Oh Hell. Would you two stop it? Seriously? Look around you, this is pathetic." You shout, gesturing to all the students watching eagerly for the next move. You wanted to curse the lot of them. "And you know better then this! He's not worth it!" you continue, now talking directly to Harry. He gives you a sheepish look but doesn't lower his wand.

"I am actually." Draco says suggestively. You don't even acknowledge him, as you stay focused on Harry and his erratic breathing. You just wanted him to calm down. And without another thought you pull Harry into you and kiss him. A loud uproar came from the crowd, but you ignored it, focusing solely on his lips. A strange sensation begins to fill you as an incredibly angry emotion pervades your mind.

"Protego!" someone shouts. You pull away from the kiss and spin around just in time to see the remnants of a spell shimmering away, extremely close to you. Draco rolls his eyes and lowers his wand.

"What did you do that for?" Draco asks angrily, glaring at the boy who had entered the circle next to him.

"You heard Dumbledore. Attacking a student, especially her, with no provocation is grounds for expulsion. I just saved your arse." Art says confidently, "Okay show is over, everyone can go back to whatever they were doing before this little tête-à-tête." He adds, waving his wand around. And that was when you noticed his Prefect badge. Art was a prefect?

"We didn't need your help." Harry says irritably giving Art a cold look.

"I beg to differ Potter." Art says harshly. You were still shocked to see Art standing there in front of you. Looking like a Greek God. You shake your head roughly. You are standing right next to Harry for crying out loud. What is wrong with your brain?

"Come on Harry, Lanae, let's go to the common room." Hermione says taking your hand and pushing Harry in the opposite direction of where Draco and Art stood standing.

"Yeah, listen to the Mudblood." Draco quips.

You wrench your hand out of her grasp, brandish your wand, and quicker then anyone would have thought a girl who had just recovered from five broken ribs and other miscellaneous injuries could move you had Draco up against the wall, your hand grasped tightly around his neck, wand inches from his face.

"Lanae?"

You heard your name but only saw Draco. You wanted to hurt him.

"Lanae!" Art shouts grabbing your arm and yanking you away from Draco. You let him. What came over me you think as the anger that had been coursing through you slowly subsides.

"You okay?" Art asks you slowly. You hadn't even realized you were staring off into space.

"Um yeah. I think. Sorry Malfoy. Lost my temper." You say quickly, turning back towards your two shocked friends. You pocket your wand and walk past Harry and Hermione not stopping for them. You couldn't explain what had just happened, and it scared the hell out of you.


	37. Recollection

"What happened back there?" Hermione asks catching up with you. You ignore her question and turn down another hallway.

"Lanae. Stop. What happened?" Harry says sternly grabbing you by your arm, stopping you mid stride.

"I don't know okay? I don't know." You shout, backing away from him. You were embarrassed, and frightened. You couldn't even try to explain what happened if you wanted to. Draco had called Hermione a mudblood and you were annoyed yes, but then all you felt was anger. It was so strong you couldn't help but act on it. How were you supposed to explain that to anyone? You just wanted to get away, go someplace by yourself and think, or not think. You didn't care.

"We understand if you lost your temper. What he did to you was inexcusable. You just seemed fine earlier is all. I think that is why it surprised us." Hermione says cautiously.

You wanted to yell. She had no idea what was going on. How you were fine, are fine, and that losing your temper like that should not have happened. Where the hell had that anger come from anyways? But maybe if you just went along with her reasoning they would leave you alone. Besides telling them you think those might not have been your emotions controlling you would probably result in nothing good.

"Thanks. I think I was just embarrassed." You say, choosing your words carefully, trying to keep your unsteadiness at bay.

"You shouldn't be. Really you just did what I was thinking about doing for the past week. If anything, I am jealous." Harry says, taking your hand in his and giving it a light squeeze.

"Jealous that I didn't have you up against the wall instead?" You suggest hoping you had just found your way to change the subject.

"Well there is that too." He grins pulling you closer to him

"Your time will come." You chuckle lightly.

"Can't wait."

"Oh Lord. You two and your sexual innuendos," Hermione mutters shaking her head, "You aren't even boyfriend and girlfriend yet!"

"Fine. Lanae would you be my girlfriend?" Harry asks dramatically.

"You're ridiculous." You say, rolling your eyes.

"I was being serious."

"Even if you were, I am not ready yet." You say still keeping the lightness to your tone, but you had a bad feeling this was about to get ugly.

"Why not? Cho and I broke up a week ago."

"I was asleep. Seems like only a day to me."

"Come on… you know I like you. I know you like me. Why can't we be together?" Harry asks sounding amused more then anything, like it was all some funny joke.

"Oh I don't know, because I would prefer not to be a rebound." You say seriously, crossing your hands over your chest.

"You wouldn't be. Cho was the rebound. It would be like going back to the way it was."

"It doesn't work like that Harry. You can't go back to a relationship before you messed it all up and rebounded with some chick. We have to start over."

"Like kissing me randomly? That's your version of starting over?" He says, sounding annoyed.

You wanted to try and settle your mind before you went back into a relationship with him. You were going to be busy with school, Snape's lessons, digesting what Luke did to you, and hoping that whatever happened with Draco back there was a one-time occurrence. Fitting him in would be more like a chore, and that would suck for both of you. Waiting seemed like the logical idea.

"Look, can't you wait a couple of days?" you plead.

"Why? So you can figure out if you'd rather be with Draco?" he snaps, turning angry.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaims. You had forgotten she was there, but she sounded just as offended as you were by that comment.

"Oh yeah, you got me. It is such a difficult decision deciding between the guy who got me beaten to a pulp or my ex boyfriend/best friend who I still like a great deal. Pure genius on your part for figuring that one out."

"Well maybe if you hadn't lied I wouldn't have dumped you, and then you wouldn't have fallen for some stupid trick Malfoy set up."

You slap him across the face. Hard.

"Be proud. You're officially a dick." You growl. And before he could say another word you spin around and walk off.

"Don't bother looking for me." You shout, before breaking into a run.

You reach the library out of breath with a piercing pain in your side. Great. Just great. Hurrying you found the most secluded part of the library and took a seat on the floor. You should start homework; let your mind get lost in that. But instead you sit there with your head in your hands concentrating on breathing. In and out. Don't think about Harry. Don't think about your dad. Don't think about Draco. Just empty your mind.

"You okay?"

The unexpected voice caused you to jump, lifting your head up too far and hitting it on the bookshelf. That hurt.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to startle you." He says taking a seat in front of you on the floor.

"No big Art. What's another bruise right?" you chuckle, though there was really nothing humorous about it.

"You know, it's probably not the smartest thing, sitting over here in the corner by yourself." He says in that concerned voice of his. You look into his face, wondering why he was even talking to you. Why he stopped the fight earlier. Why he helped calm you down. Why he took care of you when you were drunk. Why he danced with you. And then you gasped. Because it clicked. And you felt stupid for not seeing it right away.

"You're Artemis. You gave me that dress. That's why you knew about the lace, and how it came off." You accuse. You wanted to back up, not sure if you felt scared or relieved, but seeing as the bookshelf was right behind you it did not matter.

"I was wondering when you were going to figure it out. Took you long enough." He laughs, not seeming to realize the implications of this newfound fact.

"I had a lot on my mind." You argue.

"I don't doubt that."

"But if you're Artemis, that means you knew about what was going to happen to me." You say, starting to get mad.

"No. That is not true. I had no idea Luke was going to hurt you like that. But I gave you the dress as a precaution. And because I knew you'd look beautiful in it." He says more serious now. Did your breathing just falter? Seriously?

"But you don't even know me. Not really. And I know next to nothing about you. And it seems to me you are pretty buddy buddy with Malfoy and therefore anyone else associated with Voldemort for that matter." You whisper quickly, not wanting to be over heard.

"My name is Artemis Hunter. Both my parents died when I was young. I've spent the last seven years here. And I am a spy for Dumbledore."

"No way. Why would you be? You're in Slytherin." You state. Sure you sounded ignorant, but you did not want to take any chances.

"Voldemort killed my parents. It seemed like the logical choice. Though I was not supposed to tell you this. Snape's orders. But I felt it was time you knew the truth. And I really am sorry for not getting to you sooner. It should never have happened." He whispers, touching your arm lightly where a very faint yellow still lingered from a bruise.

"I didn't think it would be you. I just didn't connect the dots. How you were always so nice to me. Different. Not saying I trust you. But there is something about you. Something that makes me want to trust you."

"I feel the exact same way. I feel comfortable around you." He says giving you one of those gorgeous knock out smiles. No guy should be allowed to look that good. Ever.

"I have to ask you something though. You can't tell your friends about me. At least not the good parts. You're not even supposed to know. But I felt like I owed you an explanation."

"But they know you saved me." You point out. You didn't want to start lying again. It always blew up in your face.

"But that means I knew about the plan, and thus knew what was happening to you." He reasons.

"But you didn't. Technically. And I already came up with an excuse for you giving me the dress." You say, before you could stop yourself. He looked amused and raised an eyebrow.

"And what would that be?"

"Thatyousawhowdowniwassoyouwantedtocheermeupandtakemeoutandthoughtupthisromanticplantomakemehappyagain." You mumble absurdly fast, trying to keep the blushing at a minimum.

"Doesn't explain the tracking spell." He smirks. How had he understood that?

"You were afraid I would get lost."

"Lanae, as much as I wish that was the reason it can't be. We can be secret friends though. It will be fun."

You didn't have the heart to tell him how not fun that sounded. But he had a point. He couldn't be a spy anymore if everyone knew he was a spy. That is if he is telling the truth, which you felt like he was. You nod slightly. He stands up and offers you his hand.

"Thank You. About breaking up the fight and helping me earlier. I don't know what got into me." You say not being able to look him in the eyes.

"I am sure you will be just fine. Better then fine. It happens to the best of us. Know I am here if you ever want to talk okay?" he finishes. He was still holding your hand, and it was warm, and nice. Better then nice. You nod slowly, sliding your hand from his. He was not someone you needed to think about that way.

"See you around Lanae. And stay safe." He smiles and leaves. You were alone again in your corner. With one thing checked off your busy schedule. Art is Artemis. Big duh there. With a sigh you compose yourself and walk towards the library exit. You needed to talk with Dumbledore, just run the whole Artemis thing by him, because the last thing you needed was to be tricked again. You were so into your own thoughts you completely didn't see the person you ran into on your way out.

"So sorry." You say looking up.

"I am too. I'm really sorry."

Harry was looking down at you with those big bright green eyes, and in his hands where a bouquet of flowers.

"You're sorry?" you ask surprised.

"Yes. I was being daft. I lost you once; I don't want to lose you again. Please forgive me." He says, handing you the flowers. They were beautiful.

"Daft is an understatement. I thought you might have swallowed some moronic dick potion."

"I don't think that's a real potion."

"Not the point." You say trying to glare at him.

"The point is you are beautiful, and wonderful. And I will wait until you're ready to be my girlfriend again. I can wait for perfection."

"Did Ron tell you to say that last line?" you grin, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't change the subject," he laughs, and adds, "do you forgive me?"

"I do." You say giving him a big hug.

"Got to admire Gryffindor love. Can I join?"

You release Harry and turn to face the voice. You stood paralyzed in the spot not knowing what to say or do. You were half terrified, half furious.

"Oh look at that, your face is almost all healed." He adds reaching out to touch your face, smiling evilly.

"Don't you dare touch me Luke." You say in a voice so deadly you hardly believed it was your own.

"No need to get so defensive. Is she always like this? Or is it just because of what happened last week? I heard it was pretty horrible." Luke says turning his attention to Harry.

"You are scum," you growl.

"Go away Luke." Harry says, the epitome of calm.

"Sure. I'll go away. For now." Luke adds, giving you a wink before walking away.


	38. Birthday Reminder

Dear wonderful readers,

I have not updated this particular story in a very long time, and I would suggest catching up by reading a few chapters ahead of this but that is solely up to you. Either way I hope you enjoy this and review or message all you want. :D

* * *

"Thank you so much for helping me with these papers Hermione. You pretty much saved my life." You say, closing your book.

"Of course. I help the boys for no reason, so it would make sense to help you when you actually deserve it."

"I think friendship is reason enough." Harry says coming over to the couch.

"You would." you say, tossing your book at him. Hermione let out a soft scream that tapered off when Harry caught it. You chuckle to yourself. Hermione and her love for books never ceased to amaze you.

"Ready for yet another school day then?" Harry asks, taking a seat beside you. You give him a small smile. He had been incredibly patient with you the last couple of days. You felt sick off and on, and he was there with you every step of the way. Maybe this was his way of proving he really was sorry. You still felt guilty for not telling them that you know who Artemis is, but it was better then making up some absurd pretense that Artemis was actually a bad guy. Dumbledore had confirmed what all that Artemis had said. He also agreed with Artemis that you should do your best to keep the truth from anyone and everyone for the time being. Which you will do by not bringing it up ever again. You didn't want to lie anymore.

"We better get to DADA. You know Professor Moss will throw a hissy fit if we are late." Ron says rushing by the three of you.

"Which makes no sense since we pretty much teach ourselves." Hermione adds, following him out.

"Yeah, Moss does seem like a dumb twit. But I guess after last year, anyone is better then that." You mutter, remembering the things they had told you about Umbridge.

"You're telling me." Harry smiles, grabbing your hand and pulling you out after them.

* * *

"Isn't there a rule here that if a teacher is more than fifteen minutes late class is canceled?" you ask laying your head on the table.

"Of course not. What kind of rule is that?" Hermione exclaims, flipping through her book on today's supposed lesson. Only problem being Professor Moss and his lesson plan were nowhere in sight.

"We did that in America."

"I should move to America." Ron sighs propping his head up with his fist.

The Ravenclaws that shared this class with you didn't seem bothered by the Professor's absence. They were acting more like Hermione, like they wanted to have class with or without the professor. Weirdos.

"Where do you think he is?" Neville asks, coming over to the four of you.

"Longbottom get to your seat, now. 10 points from Gryffindor." Snape practically slithers into the room. You couldn't stifle the groan that escaped your mouth. You weren't supposed to have to see him until tonight, when you had your _remedial potions_ with him. That and he always sucked all the happiness out of the room. Maybe he was related to a dementor.

"Professor Moss is out ill. I will take over this class for the remainder of his absences."

"At least he might actually teach us something." Hermione whispers.

"Another 10 points from Gryffindor. Granger, do try to keep your mouth shut while I am speaking."

"Or subtract the entirety of our House points." Harry grumbles. You grin at him and look back up at Snape.

"As talented as you all probably think you are, I doubt your skill levels are where they should be at your age."

You looked around the room and had to suppress your laughter. Every single Ravenclaw was glaring at him. A fierce, I hope you die in your sleep, glare.

"Which is why I have asked one of the seventh years to provide assistance, and help me demonstrate key defensive spells. Let me introduce to you, Artemis Hunter."

You didn't dare look around at your friends and their reactions to that name. You had to keep your own reaction at bay. An over whelming excitement shot through you that you couldn't explain. At the same time utter horror. All the while you were just trying to figure out what you were going to do. So much for not lying. You glance towards the back of the room to see Artemis striding forward. You hadn't seen him since that day in the library where you figured it all out. And on a side note, were you the only one who seemed to melt at the sight of him? He had some weird physical effect on you.

"Lanae! Oh my God. It's him. It's him." Hermione was struggling to keep her voice down as she leaned in closer to you.

"Must be." You mutter wondering if Artemis was purposefully not looking at you or just hadn't seen you yet.

"I knew he wasn't good news. He probably planned the whole attack." Harry says angrily joining the conversation.

"That doesn't seem logical. He was the one that told Neville where she was." Hermione argues. You wanted to chime in and agree, but you were too focused on Artemis. He stops and turns as he reaches the front of the classroom. He still stared straight ahead, not giving you the time of day.

"Maybe he wanted to get Malfoy in trouble."

"Harry, don't be daft. Lanae should probably talk to him."

"Granger, do I have to use a silencing spell? Keep your mouth shut. Another 10 points from Gryffindor." Snape shouts, glaring in your general direction.

In that moment you see Art wink at you before looking straight ahead again. You couldn't help but grin for the rest of the class.

* * *

"Lanae!"

You stop and turn around to the call of your name. Art was running up to you. Both Harry and Ron tense up beside you.

"Yes?" you ask innocently. During class you had been partnered up with him, and had given him a run for his money in silent spell casting.

"I need to talk to you." He says calmly, looking only at you.

"Whatever you can say to her you can say to all of us." Ron chimes in.

"Actually no. It will only take a minute."

"Sure. I'll be right back guys." You say walking over to the other side of the hallway, still in sight of Harry but far enough away so he wouldn't hear.

"I see you didn't tell them."

"You asked me not to. I obliged." You whisper.

"Glad to hear it. I just wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday."

Your eyes widen. "My birthday isn't for another week. And even then how did you know? I haven't told anyone. I don't want to tell anyone."

"Oh right, I meant to ask what you wanted for your birthday... But now you're telling me you're just going to pretend like it isn't your birthday?? That it isn't your 17th birthday?"

"You are avoiding the question."

"No, you are Lanae. Besides I can guarantee that this is one birthday you won't be able to hide."

You look up into his eyes. You felt an over whelming amount of annoyance along with a side of intrigue. But this time you knew it wasn't your own emotions, because you were still confused as to how Art knew about your birthday.

"I don't understand..." but your sentence drifts off because you suddenly become very woozy, and lose your balance. You start to fall but Art catches you. You begin to hear shouts but it was all very hazy, and you couldn't make out what they were saying. You felt fear, and anger, and worry. You blink your eyes rapidly trying to focus.

"What did you do to her!?" Harry cries out rushing to you.

"I didn't do anything Potter. She seems to have lost her balance."

"I am okay." You manage to say, trying to stand back up. Art helps you, but doesn't release you from his grasp.

"You sure? You need to go to the Hospital wing?" he asks, sounding a tad more then just concerned.

"No, no more hospital wing. I am fine. Just a little tired apparently." You say.

"Okay, well I will see you later Lanae." Art says, releasing you from his grasp and giving you one last smile before he goes.

"What was that about?" Harry asks.

"He just wanted to ask if I was feeling better." you make up the lie quickly.

"Yeah, because he was feeling guilty for almost getting you killed." Harry growls.

"Look, let's not talk about him anymore. Art is not that bad of a guy. And sure he may be in league with Draco and all the other soon to be death eater Slytherins, but for now I am just going to do my best to get caught up in school."

"Good idea Lanae. Let's get some food in you." Hermione suggests taking you by the arm.

* * *

The day went by boringly. You did as much homework as you could, and surprisingly you had almost everything finished by dinner, with Hermione's help of course. That girl was an angel. You even forgot about Snape's lessons until Harry brought them up around dessert.

"You dreading remedial potions then?" Harry asks, taking a bite of pumpkin pie.

"Ughhh." You groan lying your head down.

"You forgot didn't you?" Hermione chuckles.

"Yes." You sigh, wishing they had forgotten too.

"It might not be too bad." Neville chimes in. You give him a solid glare. They all could be as optimistic as they wanted, but it wouldn't matter to them in the end. You were the one who was going to have to deal with Snape prodding your brain for over an hour.

"You'll be fine. It might be fun." Harry chuckles.

"I would punch you, but I have to go clear my mind." You say, standing up.

"See you later!" Ron attempts to say after shoveling yet another forkful of food in his mouth.

You give them a quick smile and rush off to Snape's classroom. You just wanted to get this over with. You didn't knock. Mainly because you didn't expect anyone to answer, so imagine your surprise when you enter to find Draco, Art, Luke, and three other guys you didn't know staring at you.

"What are you doing here?" Art asks stepping forward.

"Admiring the ambiance." You answer walking towards Snape's office making the decision to ignore them.

"She's here for Remedial Potions." Draco says in a mocking tone, causing the other guys to break into laughter. You could always ignore them later…

"So is this like the small penis union?" you say, turning to face the group of boys, "Or the Beans for Brains club? Since Draco attends both regularly you can see how it can get a bit confusing as to which one this is. No wait; it's Thursday. It must be the 'How to live with Herpes' support group."

"You are a witty one today aren't you?" Luke asks.

"In comparison to every other day? Because I think my level of wittiness is pretty consistent."

"Maybe your incessant prattling is the reason you got beat to a pulp. You ever think of that?" Luke smiles wickedly.

Art and Draco tense up slightly waiting for your reaction. They had seen your mood swings recently before and were expecting something to that caliber. The other guys stood there in anticipation, hoping to see the famous Iverson lose her cool. And there's no doubt that you would have given them a show of your fury if Snape had not walked in at that precise moment.

"Out."

"Yes Sir." You salute. You take two steps to the door before his voice rings out again.

"Not you Iverson. You stay. Draco take your business elsewhere."

Draco nods and leads the guys out. You wanted to curse them all so badly, but refrained somehow. You didn't even realize your hands were clenched into fists until the door shut behind the last douche bag.

"Amazing how you can be punctual for everything but class. How do you know Artemis Hunter?" Snape asks heading to his office. You followed him but were in no mood to answer his questions.

"I think our Thursday nights together are going to be a blast, don't you?" You ask, taking a seat in the chair in front of his desk.

"I asked you a question."

"I ignored it and moved on. Keep up professor." You say, snapping your fingers.

"Detention for your attitude." Snape growls.

"I think you just want to spend more time with me."

"You're acting like the self-righteous immature girl I've always suspected you to be." He says coldly.

"Wow. That hurt. Really, it did. Are you going teach me Occlumency or not because there are so many things I would rather be doing."

"Likewise Miss Iverson. Clear the chairs and tables and then we'll begin."


	39. Headaches, Lies & Handcuffs

"STOP!" you yell falling back down in your chair, panting heavily.

"You're not trying very hard." Snape says in his calm drawling tone. No one would even be able to tell he had been at this for an hour. All he had to do was wave his wand and bam he was in your head. You cleared your mind every single time, but right before he casts the spell, right when you breathe in and all you see is a blank slate in your mind's eye some random emotion will pass by, linking Snape to whatever parallel memory you had with that emotion. It was getting beyond ridiculous.

"Clear your mind Lanae." He repeats for what could only be the thousandth time.

"I am. I have been, and will continue to do so, but it isn't WORKING!" you shout, standing up in your ready stance once again.

Okay focus. Clear mind. Blank slate. Nothing but darkness.

"Legilimence!"

And there it was, curiosity this time.

You could barely see Snape through your eyes as you begin to remember being in Filch's Filing room. You were looking through files. File after file. And then your mother's file. What had you read about her? You were opening the manila envelope when the memory vanished and you collapsed to the floor.

"You might be worse at this then even Potter was." Snape's cold remark didn't bug you as much as it should have because you were still replaying the memory Snape had just shared with you. Why couldn't you remember it? Why had Snape stopped so abruptly? He usually goes for a couple of minutes, giving you time to fight back which you usually did, but this time was different. It was like you were remembering that memory for the first time.

You looked up at Snape who looked bored, but you felt apprehension. Like he didn't want to do this anymore. How could you possibly think that's what he is feeling? A slight headache had begun at the beginning of the hour and it was now at full force.

"Are we done?" you ask standing up on your own.

"There's no point in doing this anymore if you aren't even going to fight back." He says, leaning against one of the tables.

"Listen, that last time wasn't my fault. I don't remember that memory at all. It was weird."

"People who try to get in your head can also place memories or thoughts in there."

"That's reassuring. Why doesn't everyone have to learn this then? I feel like it's something we should learn how to fight against."

"Because it is one of the hardest forms of magic to understand and grasp. Most students don't have to worry about others getting in their mind. But you are not most students. Which is why you must try harder. You must succeed if you want to keep you're the Dark Lord out of your mind."

"Look, I am trying okay? I told you. Every time, without fail, one single emotion gets through. I don't know how. I don't know how to make my mind any more clear." You wanted him to believe you.

"Fine, practice this week. Work on clearing your mind at night before you sleep. Focus on being empty." He says, sounding less annoyed and cold then before. With a flick of his risk the tables and chairs were back in their order.

"You are dismissed." Snape says walking back to his office.

"Professor?" you ask before thinking better of it.

"Yes?" he groans, obviously in a hurry to get rid of you.

"So you put that memory in my head then? The one about finding my mom's file?"

"I did imply that." His tone cold once more.

"Right, okay sorry. See you in class tomorrow! I know you just can't wait." You say flashing him one last smile before exiting to the dark dungeonesque hallway. You close the door and rest against it, breathing slowly. You couldn't explain it, but for some reason it felt like Snape was lying. He didn't put that memory there in your head, but why pretend otherwise? Maybe you were just being paranoid. Maybe not. One way to figure it out, find Filch's office and see if looking for your mom's file will jog the real memory, or stop at where Snape had created it.

You headed straight for Filch's office. It wasn't too late yet so you wouldn't get in trouble for being out and about, but you were guaranteed detention if anyone caught you rifling through Filch's mot prized workplace. This was going to call for some sneakiness. You round a corner and jump into the shadow of darkness behind a statue when you hear voices coming towards you. You had to stifle a giggle. You felt ridiculous tiptoeing around in the dark, but it was fun. Good practice for if Filch or any professors show up at an inconvenient time.

"She asks for trouble you know that don't you?"

"I think you're biased Ginny."

"I am not. She's nice and everything but how else can someone attract so much unwanted attention? She wants it; that's how."

Your eyes widen. It was Ginny Weasley and Lavender Brown. You don't talk to either one of them but they always seemed nice.

"I don't think Lanae wanted to get beaten up." Lavender says, both passing by without noticing your presence.

"Yeah, I know. But she is messing with Harry while playing around with all those Slytherin guys. It just doesn't make any sense as to why he still likes her. She seems dangerous."

"Then talk to him. That's your problem Ginny; you don't put yourself out there. You have to make the guy realize that what they really want is you."

The conversation continued down the hallway. You didn't move until it was complete and utter silence. Due to your sneakiness or just plain shock you didn't know. Ginny, Ron's little sister, thinks you're dangerous and a slut. Not to mention the obvious crush she has on Harry. But you're not dangerous. Why else would Dumbledore want you to learn Occlumency? Or have entire plans set up to catch you in a lie. Or have Voldemort aka your dad able to slide in and out of your head so easily. Yeah, none of that makes you dangerous.

You slowly walk to Filch's office no longer worried about getting caught. Amazing what a few choice words could do to you. Maybe more detention would keep you away from Harry. He could have a normal life without dating his parent's murderer's daughter.

"Alohamora."

You pocket your wand and head straight for the files. You expected it to be messy, like the memory but it wasn't. Iverson. Looking for the I's. A moment later you had your mom's file in your hands. Opening it you remember. You remember sitting there on the ground and being surprised to find it among all the other files. She was in Slytherin. You didn't have to look through the detentions to remember that most of them were with Snape. But there was something missing wasn't there? A photo? You shake out the contents, but it was all hand written garbage. No photo. Snape lied to you, and you were going to find out why. It would give you something to do besides dwelling on Ginny and Lavender's words.

* * *

"Wake up sleepy head!! Time to get to potions!" Hermione shouts, shaking your shoulders violently.

"I'm going to skip today. Thank you." You mutter pulling your blankets over your head.

"No you don't. Come on get up. You didn't catch up with all your schoolwork only to get behind again."

"Why do I have to have such a studious best friend I ask myself," You mumble as you sit up.

"You'll thank me later. You have thirty minutes before class, try to be on time." She ruffles your hair and leaves you alone in the room to get ready.

You did not want to face Snape or Harry, and yet both just happen to be in your first class of the day. You take your shower thinking solely on what you were going to do about Harry. One giant anthill at a time. You had to let him off nicely, so he wouldn't hate you like before. You couldn't live with that again. But at the same time it wasn't fair for Ginny to make those accusations. You love Harry and would never hurt him on purpose. By the time you got out of the shower you hadn't concluded anything about the Harry situation. On to the Snape situation. How to prove your professor is lying. Maybe the library had a self-help book on the subject. You throw your bag over your shoulder and head towards class.

You didn't have a headache the entire morning until you walked into potions. It hit you like a Mac truck, and you had to sit down in the first available seat. Did you realize you were sitting next to Malfoy? No, because your head felt like it was splitting open.

"I think you're just pretending to dislike me. How else would you explain the stalker like tendencies?"

His voice reverberated to the back of your head. It felt like he was shouting at the top of his lungs. You didn't even respond. Instead you tossed your stuff to the ground, stood up and walked up to Snape who was already brewing away some concoction at the front of the classroom.

"I have a headache." You say, trying to concentrate on standing straight.

"I have a headache every day Miss Iverson. It is something we must deal with when surrounded by…"

You cut him off. "I don't think you understand. I can barely stand here and talk to you. I feel like my head is about to explode. Literally."

"Then go to Madame Pomfrey."

You turn to go and fall to the ground.

"Lanae!"

Their footsteps felt like drums pounding in your brain. You closed your eyes tighter willing the pain to go away. It didn't help that your collapse caused more and more people to raise their voices. And then just like that it was gone. You opened your eyes slowly. Snape was bending down next to you looking worried. Harry and Hermione were standing next to him looking down at you with mixed looks of fear.

"Sorry." You mutter standing up, ignoring Harry's outstretched hand.

"What happened?" Snape asks looking and sounding more like his usual boring self.

"I told you I had a headache. It's gone now. Wa-lah. Let's get this class started!"

You walk back to where you left your stuff next to Draco. You purposefully ignored Harry and Hermione's gaze.

"I think your boyfriend is trying to get your attention." Draco points out as you begin to take out your potion book from your bag.

"He's not my boyfriend, but thanks for letting me know." Instead of looking up you continue to open your book to the allotted page and begin reading. Snape had begun talking but you tuned him out.

"Trouble in paradise?" Draco whispers.

"There's going to be trouble with your face if you don't leave me alone." You threaten, not looking up from the page about acidic reactions to sleeping potions. Incredibly interesting stuff.

"You sat next to me. I can talk all I want."

"You're acting like a four year old." You quip.

"When are the drama lessons? Will you teach us how to faint on command or how to make a scene first?"

You glare at him. You were not dramatic. Okay fine, you weren't that dramatic. You sigh, and, being the better person, turn back to the front. Just breathe. Pay attention to Snape's drawling voice.

"Is Potter any good in the sack?"

His whisper sent shivers down your spine. You wanted to just haul off and punch him right there. Stay calm; don't let him get a rise out of you, you tell yourself.

"I'd imagine he's a lot better than you." You whisper calmly not even looking over at him.

"So you've imagined me then? On top or bottom?"

And that's when you slapped him hard across the face. It sounded like you cracked a whip in the air. On a second thought you really shouldn't have lost your temper, but it was obviously too late for that. You felt good. You smile joyously at Draco who was holding his bright red cheek and say, "Lesson one: the dramatic scene. Pay close attention Malfoy."

"Iverson. Detention." Snape calls out. You turn your attention to the front of the classroom where Snape stood all high and mighty.

"Sir, I would be honored to spend more time with you. And don't worry, I can stop any rumors that may formulate about how much time we spend together. I am just a disobedient student in need of some good punishing." You say in a tone usually reserved for Harry in the heat of making-out.

At this point you really didn't think about what you were saying, the adrenaline did the thinking for you. You were just remembering how Snape had lied to you, and that he was going to pay. And by the sound of it most of the students got the undertone of your comment and was looking back and forth between you and Snape in shock and maybe slight horror.

"Go to the Headmaster's office." Snape says coldly. Your words hadn't even cut through his emotional control. Try number two:

"Yes sir." You gave a tiny salute and tossed your book in your bag, smirked at Draco who was looking semi-impressed, and headed for the door. You turned the handle and opened the door, but stopped before walking out.

"Do you want to bring the handcuffs for later or is that my job?"

Snape's eyes widened and a good majority of the students gasped.

"Leave my classroom immediately."

"Whatever you say Severus." You say with a wink. His facial expression was classic. It was one of pure and unadulterated hatred. The door closed behind you with a thud and you pranced off to Dumbledore's office.


	40. Surprises

You skipped all the way to Dumbledore's office. You felt absurdly giddy. The secret entrance to his office was already open allowing you to walk right on up and throw open the door without so much as a knock. You were surprised to see Art standing in front of Dumbledore in the midst of a conversation no less. They paused whatever they were talking about to give you a strange look.

"Art!" you shout running to him and giving him a hug. It felt as if you were drunk on happiness, but you had no idea why, especially considering the circumstances.

"You okay Lanae?" Art asks, patting you lightly on the back.

"Dumbledore!" you shout again, running over to give him a hug as well. "You are loved too!"

"Headmaster, is she okay?" Art asks.

"Of course I'm okay! I'm better then okay! I'm magical! Get it?"

"Why are you here Miss Iverson?" Dumbledore's voice was calm and soothing, and you felt like he was truly curious.

"Snape kicked me out of his class. Told me to go see you." You laugh, collapsing in one of the big chairs in front of his desk.

"What did you do?"

You started giggling profusely in response.

The door bursts open allowing Snape to stomp into the room. It was as if a dark and ominous cloud suddenly ascended on your mood. Your giggling stopped immediately.

"Severus would you mind explaining yours and Miss Iverson's guest appearances?" Dumbledore asks, still in that same calm tone.

"This girl had the audacity to suggest in front of all of her peers that she and I were romantically involved." Snape says fiercely.

"No I didn't." you lie.

"She suggested that I punish her in a physical manner."

"No I didn't."

"She asked if she should bring handcuffs."

"Okay I might have said that." You smirk, giving Art a wink. He looked quite astounded. Perhaps it was the fact that not even a minute ago you were bubbling over with giggles and happiness, and now here was Snape throwing a fit in your honor.

"Lanae, did you or did you not say those things."

You looked each of them in the eye, lingering a tad longer on Snape, and replied, "No. I did not."

"Veritaserum will make you tell the truth you stupid girl!" Snape shouts.

"Sucks being lied to doesn't it Professor!" You shout, just as loudly and just as angrily. No one said a word, so you took that as an invitation to continue. "Yesterday you said you planted those memories in my head. You lied. Those were my memories that, for some reason, I couldn't remember. Why did you lie? What were you so afraid of?" Your anger was so consuming it made Dumbledore and Art disappear. It was only you and Snape, and he was staring down at you with an equal amount of rage. You didn't know what you wanted to do… curse him? Yell some more? Neither of you moved.

That is until your head starts splitting open from pain. You crash to the floor.

"Lanae!"

And then the pain vanished. Just like it had earlier in class. As you sat up you noticed that the anger you had felt dissipated. In fact the overwhelming feelings ranging from pure giddiness to all out rage were gone. What had you been thinking?? Saying those things to Snape in class? And then threatening him now?

"Lanae?" Art's soft voice was closer then you expected. You opened your eyes and saw him leaning over you. You try to sit up by yourself but found that your body was incredibly weak. "Here, let me help you." He says, his fingers finding there way under the base of your neck. He lifts you up gently. And continues to help you stand a few seconds later. His fingers sent waves of electric heat throughout your body.

You raised your head to look at Snape and Dumbledore, expecting to not only get chewed out but receive detention for the rest of your life. Snape still looked furious, but more hesitant in a way. Like he didn't know how he should proceed.

"I apologize for my actions. I don't know what I was thinking." You say timidly, truly not understanding what had gotten into you.

"If you think an apology will…" Snape began, but Dumbledore cut him off sharply.

"Lanae, you need to go to the Hospital Wing. Artemis will take you. Let Madame Pomfrey know I sent you, and explain to her the pain you have been feeling."  
You couldn't tell who was more shocked. You or Snape.

"You're going to just let her off with…" Snape practically spits out the words, but is cut off once again.

"You may take her there now Mr. Hunter." Art takes you by the elbow and walks you out of the office. You both walk in silence for a good five minutes. You didn't know what to say. You were too busy thinking.

"You really suggested bringing hand cuffs to detention?" Art asks.

"He's lucky I didn't ask him to choose between the pink fuzzy pair or sparkly lime green pair." You smile, finding it easier to joke about what you had said then actually dive into why you had said it.

"The fuzzy pink ones. By far the better choice."

Your laughter reverberated off the walls. "I'll be sure to remember that."

You sat on one of the cots wishing you were anywhere else. It felt like you lived here in the hospital wing. Madame Pomfrey had rushed off to find the cure for your random headaches, if that's what they were. Artemis had left you once you were safely at your allotted destination. So you stared at the wall ahead of you, wishing you could rewind today's festivities.

"Somehow I just knew I'd find you in here."

"What can I say? I've come attached to these ole cots." You remark, patting the mattress lightly, trying to hide your surprise at his presence.

"So when you get attached to me I should expect your constant and unwavering attention?"

You look up then as Harry takes a seat on the cot next to you. You weren't going to allow yourself to ever get attached to him. He deserves better that was clear. Even if the jealousy of seeing him with someone else boiled you alive at least he would be happy, and safe. Or well, safer.

"Look Harry. You and I, we're just a bad idea, a time bomb waiting to happen.

"And you've come to this conclusion how?" Harry asks, leaning forward, resting on his knees.

"Well, it is just illogical. I'm the daughter of the most hated guy ever."

"You're Hitler's daughter?"

"Harry how can you joke like that? I am a liability when it comes to your life. Besides I'm not interested in you anymore."

"Right. Of course you're not."

He wasn't supposed to be smiling, and he certainly wasn't supposed to be thinking you were playing around. Sure that last bit was a lie, but everything else was true. You were not good for his well-being.

"By the way, it took Ron, Hermione, I and even Malfoy to get people to realize you were joking about Snape and you."

"Draco?" you ask, momentarily distracted from your thoughts, as you swing your legs over to face him directly.

"Yes. I think Snape ordered him to do it. But either way you left the class in utter chaos."

"My goal in life. Leaving chaos in my wake."

"Other goal in life: Try to persuade Harry Potter, not very well mind you, that you are evil or something to that extreme."

"Don't refer to yourself in third person, it's weird." You snap, realizing that right now any efforts in convincing him of the truth involving you would be in vain.

He chuckled in response and leaned in to give you a kiss on your cheek. "I have a surprise for you tonight. Don't argue."

You shut your mouth abruptly. You had every intention of arguing but he seemed so insistant. He also had a very powerful look about him, like it wouldn't matter what you say anyways.

"Good. Now why are you in here? I knew you had lost it a bit when you went off on Snape like that but what happened?"

"Bad headache."

"Again?" he sounded worried as he took your hand in his.

"Yeah, but don't worry. Madame Promfrey is going to give me something to help it." You squeeze his hand lightly. "And you really shouldn't be planning…"

"What did I tell you about arguing?" he cut you off shoving you slightly with his free hand. You roll your eyes before you look back at him. You wanted to be happy that he wasn't listening to your pleas of separation, but deep down Ginny's words kept reverberating in the back of your mind making it increasingly difficult to not hate yourself.

"Did you hear?" Ron came running into the common room out of breath.

"What? Is everyone all right? Where is Harry?" You jump up looking for any sign of trouble.

"Harry is fine. Everyone is fine. Better than fine because we have the best Quidditch captain that ever was and ever will be." Ron proclaims to the entire common room.

"Harry got captain?" Hermione asks, almost hesitantly afraid she was wrong.

"YES!!!!" Ron shouts practically jumping in the air.

"That is so great! Where is he?" you ask, automatically wanting to congratulate him on the good news.

"Do you know what this means? It means I have a shot at being on the team!" Ron continues, ignoring your question.

"You know he won't favor you just because you're his best friend." Hermione argues.

"Of course he will. That's what I'd do for him!"

"Ron, I'll have to agree with Hermione on this. Now where is Harry?" You interject.

"Talking to McGonagal still."

"When are tryouts?"

You shut the rest of the conversation out that seemed to grow to include the other students milling about the common room. You hadn't seen Harry since he visited you in the hospital wing. You weren't released until dinnertime, and he hadn't been there. Of course you had been kept preoccupied with all your classmates slaps on the back and comments of your hilarious performance earlier in potions. Which just reminded you of the uncontrollable emotions that continued to overwhelm you. All the while Snape glared down at you from his seat at the head table. You did your best to keep from looking in his general direction. He was going to get you back during your occlumency lessons; you could just feel it.

"Earth to Lanae?!"

You blinked rapidly focusing your vision on Ron's hand waving back and forth in front of your face.

"Yeah? What?"

"I forgot to tell you that McGonagal wants to see you."

"When?"

"About ten minutes ago… sorry." He looked sheepish. You shake your head in amusement. Ron was so easily distracted.

"Thanks Ron. In her office?" You ask standing to go.

"Yeah. Her office."

You rolled your eyes at Hermione, who looked incredibly proud for some reason, before heading out the portrait door. Half of you wanted to run into Harry. Congratulate him and give him a huge hug. The other part of you did not, because then you wouldn't have a reason to try and convince him, again, that you were a bad idea. And that he should go after girls more like him. Not Cho of course, but Ginny was pretty, and Ron's sister. That could be nice. Oh hell, what were you thinking? Of course it wouldn't be nice, you'd be spiteful and bitter, but he'd be better off. You were so caught up in your thoughts you were completely taken aback when a hand grabs you around the waist and pulls you into a dark corner.

"If you do not let go of me right now I will…"

"Empty threats Lanae. Empty threats."

"Harry?" You attempted to turn your head to face him but found it didn't matter because he had placed a blindfold over your eyes. "What are you doing? Harry, come on McGonogal needs to see me."

"No she doesn't. I told Ron to tell you that."

"What? Why?"

"Surprises are always more effective in stages." His breath tickled your neck.

"Harry, I told you I didn't want a surprise. I told you that this was a bad idea."

"Yes yes. I heard you. I did. Now let me guide you to our destination." His fingers tightened slightly around your waist as he began ushering you forward. There was no winning with this one.

"So are you captain of the Quidditch team or was that a lie too?"

"That wasn't a lie."

"Well congratulations. Too bad I can't see you to give you a hug."

"It's the thought that counts." He chuckles turning you towards the left now.

"You know, this is mildly unsettling. Not knowing where you're taking me. You could walk me right into a wall."

"I could. However, you'd probably punch me. And that's hardly how I want the evening to begin."

This was not supposed to be happening. It was just making it more difficult for you to get him to see the truth. Why was he being so stubborn?

Because it isn't the truth. Because you are worth it.

Shut up stupid optimistic thoughts. You had to take control of this situation, now.

"Well then let me begin by explaining to you that what you feel for me is a mild infatuation. Easy to get over when one tries. And if you try I am sure you'll find someone far more interesting than me. Someone who you can do random fun normal things with. Someone who doesn't fraternize with the enemy. Someone who doesn't have a father intent on killing you."

His hands released you then. You stopped abruptly fully aware of the absence of his touch. You didn't think it would be that easy. A small hole began to eat away at your insides. He was gone. You should be happy, but there it was… nothing. You felt nothing but emptiness.

"Harry?"

Silence. He had just left you there. He realized what you were saying was true and just left you standing blindfolded in the middle of the hallway somewhere. This was what you had wanted wasn't it? You sigh sadly, reaching up to take off the blindfold.

"Don't touch your blindfold."

His voice surprised you. It was coming from in front of you. A loud and metallic hiss occurred and then you felt his firm grip on your waist again.

"Come on. We're half way there." He says, ushering you forward. You were still in a state of shock considering you had thought for a full minute he had listened and agreed with what you had said. A cold gust of wind brought you to your senses.

"We're going outside? It's freezing!" you exclaim hugging yourself tightly.

"Oh right. Hermione made this for you."

He placed a small vile in your hand and helped you bring it to your lips.

"Wait, what is it?"

"Just drink it." He laughs closing the gap between it and your lips. The warm liquid felt like lava going down your throat but tasted like cinnamon. You felt the effects of the potion immediately. The wind, now felt warm against your skin, and you were no longer shivering.

"Hermione knew about this whole thing you're doing?" you ask, allowing him to guide you forward again.

"Of course. I even got McGonagal's permission to go outside after hours. I planned this very meticulously Lanae. Hence why any talk of your dad doesn't really matter. You're not just some girl. Sure you might drive me insane sometimes, but your company can't be any worse than my own. After all, your dad hasn't been trying to kill you for the past 16 years. He's been trying to kill me. If anything you're the one in more danger by hanging out with me. Not the other way around."

You could tell how confident he was when he was explaining all this to you. He truly believed he was more dangerous than you. And at that moment you had no proof of the contrary, but deep down you felt like he was wrong, terribly and completely wrong.

"Okay. We're here. I'm going to take off the blindfold now."

Apparently taking off the blindfold was code for something completely different, because instead of feeling his fingers untie the black cloth that was shielding your vision, he ran a finger across your lips slowly. Delicately. And then replaced his finger with his lips. You exhaled in surprise, but he only wrapped his arms tighter around you bringing you closer to his body. You kiss him back, overwhelmed by the sudden heat that began growing inside of you. It felt like fire was dancing across your lips as you kissed him. A fire that wouldn't be quenched by anything but more fire. You opened your lips slightly and felt his tongue enter your mouth. His lips were so soft and his tongue was so gentle. It caused a quiver to run down your body. You didn't even notice the blindfold was gone until you opened your eyes and realized you could see. And what you saw made you gasp. He pulled away just enough for you to see all the way around him.

You were standing in the middle of the Quidditch field and lying there on the ground was a huge blanket with candles, a basket, extra blankets and some pillows. Flowers were spread sporadically around the edges, and it looked absolutely breathtaking.

"A midnight picnic."

You looked back up at him, his twinkling eyes shone in candlelight. "Why did you do all this?"

"Because you had a stressful day?"

"Seriously." You chuckle, pushing him softly.

"Because I wanted to prove to you that I am serious. About us." He caresses your cheek with the back of his hand, sending invisible sparks across your skin.

"It's beautiful." You say, as you gaze down at it all.

"No. You're beautiful." And with that he kissed you again.


	41. One Saturday Morning

You sat up suddenly, your heart pounding awfully loud. Where were you? It was white as far as the eye could see. White? You touch the ground and realize it is snow, but why isn't it cold? Slowly but surely last night came flooding back to you. Harry and you had fallen asleep as the snow began to fall. But when you looked for him lying next to you he wasn't there. In his place is a small vile and a note.

_Drink this. If you wake up while I am gone don't worry I will be right back. One last surprise. –Harry_

You chuckle lightly. He was really outdoing himself. Another surprise? What could it possibly be? Last night was more romantic then you ever expected anything could be. He had a fruit and cheese plate, and somehow got a hold of some wine. Guess it pays to be friends with the Hogwarts house elves. He had a deck of cards so you could play games. You beat him three times at war. But the best part was lying together, talking and looking up at the stars. Not to mention the kisses. They were magical in themselves, and that's saying a lot considering you're a magical being. And then there was the simple fact that you were out here, only the two of you, and he remained a complete gentleman. Something, you noted, that Draco would never have done in a million years.

You drink the vile, and an extra dose of warmth pervades your body. Harry must have figured the potion from last night was beginning to wear off. Your stomach growled slightly, and you were now wishing you hadn't eaten all the cheese and fruit from last night. You wiped off the snow from the basket and opened it to check anyways, to your surprise there was some sausage links and scrambled eggs all ready on a plate. He really thought of everything hadn't he?

As you sat there eating your breakfast your mind replayed one of the more intense topics of conversation you had last night. You had your head lying on his chest with his arms wrapped around you when he had asked, "Why do you think your mom ever got involved with Voldemort?" The question had momentarily paralyzed you. It was something you didn't dare ask yourself and here he was throwing it out there on the table.

"Um… well, I…" you tried to formulate a sentence, but when that failed you tried to formulate words. Nothing came out. Well except tears. Tears started coming out.

"No no, Lanae I didn't mean to make you cry. It was a dumb question." He sat up and held you in his arms rocking you back and forth gently.

"It wasn't though. It was a perfectly," hiccup, "legitimate question." Hiccup. He rubbed your back until the hiccups were gone.

You sat there next to him quietly, trying to think of what to say.

"My mom never talked about him much. In fact she only mentioned him twice. The first time was when I was 8, and I had asked her who my dad was for the bazillionth time. And she sat me down and told me that who your parents are does not determine the kind of person you are going to be. Of course I was confused, but she tried to explain that my father was an evil man, but he was gone from this world. And the second time was when she heard that he was back, and so then I finally learned exactly who he was and what he was capable of. It was the first time she had talked about you. The boy who lived. It was also the beginning of my life as a nomad. We would move every month, making sure he couldn't find us. I don't know how he did. He sent Lucius to get us… and well you know the rest. So I guess to answer your question, I don't know. She never talked about her past. And it isn't like daddy and I have gotten to that point in our relationship where we can ask such questions."

You knew you sounded bitter by the end of your rambling, but you couldn't help it. You rarely thought about your mom anymore because there were so many things you weren't able to ask her and never will be. And as you sat there lying in Harry's loving arms, you randomly realized why a part of you hated Snape so much. He had known her, probably more than you ever did. He had lied about knowing a part of her, you knew that much. But what you didn't know is why. Why had he lied? What was missing in her file?

"You don't have to talk about it anymore, I was just thinking out loud anyways." He says squeezing your hand.

"It's okay. Don't worry. I try not to think about my mom too much is all. It hurts more then I let on."

"I'd like to thank you though." He says, tipping your chin upwards so he could lean down and kiss you lightly.

"For what? Letting you kidnap me and bring me down here so you could seduce me?" he laughs and kisses you again before responding.

"That, and for helping me see the brighter side of life when I couldn't see it for myself."

"What do you mean?"

"You helped me after everything that happened with Sirius. Even though you didn't do it on purpose, you don't know how much you helped."

His voice died off in your memories as you finished chewing the last of your eggs. He hadn't asked you to be his girlfriend last night, and you were beginning to think that maybe that was the surprise? Though you have to admit, you still don't know if you were ready. But this whole schpeal was quite convincing on his part. Maybe you would say yes, who knows?

The light danced across the snow illuminating the ground. It was a winter wonderland, and you were right there in the midst of it. You stood to shake off the snow that clung to your clothes. A small rustling of the wind caught your attention and you turned just in time to see Harry land softly on his feet next to you, holding a sleek looking broom in one hand and a wrapped package in another.

"Good morning beautiful." He says giving you a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Beautiful huh? I just slept out in the middle of nature and woke up with snow covering my hair, I'd hardly call all this," you say gesturing to your body, " beautiful."

"Hmm. You're right. More like gorgeous." He smiles, laying down his broom.

You eyed the package warily. It was a smaller box wrapped with gold shiny paper and a purple bow. It was pretty, but why did he have a present?

"So, I know this whole presentation caught you off guard. But I might have an alternative reason besides proving to you I want to be with you again."

He looked a tad nervous, yet semi excited.

"And that would be?" you say, urging him to continue.

"Happy early Birthday Lanae." He says, handing you the small gift.

You didn't move. In fact your heart may have stopped beating. You hadn't told anyone your birthday was coming up, and besides Art no one was supposed to know. But how had Harry known? And this whole thing was really a birthday present?

When you didn't respond Harry proceeded to explain as quickly as possible what he was thinking in doing all of this. "I figured that since you had never mentioned your birthday you didn't want anyone making a big deal out of it. I also figured that the exact date would not bring the happiest of memories. So although you weren't technically born for another week, I wanted to throw a small birthday celebration in your honor."

He was still holding out the small package. You take it from his grasp and hold it delicately in your hands. "And no one else knows?" you ask hesitantly, slowly letting what he was saying sink in.

"No one. Hermione and Ron just thought this was a random romantic thing I was doing. But I didn't want you to think that just because something horrible happened on your birthday that you couldn't still appreciate the day you were born."

"How did you even find out?" you ask staring down at the gift.

"I asked Dumbledore a month or so ago if he knew when your birthday was. He told me."

You look up at him, tears filling your eyes to the brim. He had done all this for you. He had gone to great lengths to keep it a secret just like you had wanted. How had he pieced it all together? You threw your arms around him and hugged him as tightly as you could.

"You don't know how glad I am you aren't hexing me right now."

You laugh, "And why would I do that? Because you did everything I would have asked you not to do? Seems to me this is the growing trend."

You pull back and genuinely smile up at him.

"Now open your gift."

You untie the bow, tear the wrapping paper off and look down at the black jewelry box. You glance back at him, but he only urged you to go on. His face didn't give anything away. You slowly opened the box and gasped at what was inside.

"It was my Mom's."

"I don't know what to say Harry. It's beautiful."

There in the box was the most delicate ring you had ever seen. It was a thin gold band with a princess cut ruby center, and on either side of the ruby were two square emeralds outfitted with diamonds in between them.

"Here try it on." He says taking the box from your hands and pulling the ring out of it. He took your right hand and before you could object slid it onto your ring finger. "There, it fits perfectly."

You stared down at your hand. How could he give this to you? It was a family heirloom for crying out loud!

"Harry I can't take this. It was your Mom's."

"Exactly. Something that shows how special and valuable you truly are to me."

There were no words to describe what you were feeling right now.

"Listen, I'm not going to take it back. It is yours now. So just accept it. Now for the last surprise."

"Oh no. No. I can't take any more surprises. You'll probably bring out a white unicorn and we'll ride off into the sunset the way this is all going."

"Alas they were fresh out of unicorns. So you'll just have to make do with a broomstick.. Up." With that last word his broom flew into his outstretched hand. Your eyes widened in excitement.

"Really?" you ask, looking from his broomstick back to him.

"You mean you're not going to argue with me on this one?" he asks.

"No way! Mom would never let me fly. I always wanted to, but we were always in urban areas so she said no."

"To think, I should have begun with this surprise. You might have been more agreeable if I had."

"Oh shut it. What do I do?" you ask clapping your hands together.

"You straddle the broom behind me, and hold on to my waist. If at any point I go too high or too fast just let me know."

You did as he suggested and gripped his waist firmly. He kicked off the ground. With a squeal you close your eyes and hugged him tightly. Your cheek was planted flat against his back.

"You okay?" he asks loudly, the wind rushing past your ears.

You peak an eye open and look down. The white landscape of Hogwarts was mesmerizing. Simply exquisite.

"Better than okay." You reply, leaning over so you could look straight down. Dumb idea. It wasn't that you were entirely afraid of heights, you just weren't used to being that high up on a small broom.

"I'm going to take you out over the lake. Just hold on."

And that's what you did. It was wonderful, flying around with him. Towards the end he even got a little more risky with loops and dives. By the time he was heading back towards the Quidditch pitch you were more than just happy, you were joyous. It didn't matter what anyone said about you and Harry. As long as Harry wanted you, who were you to deny him?

A small wave of anxiety hit you as you got closer to the field. And then you saw them. Little green blurs flying about the field.

"Harry we can just pick up the stuff later, no need to ruin a perfectly splendid morning."

"I can't. I have to give the basket back to the house elves as soon as possible. It's magical and thus important. Luckily the snow seems to have covered it enough so they haven't noticed it yet, but I have to get it." He says landing on the edge of the field out of sight.

"Well I'm not about to let you go out there by yourself. If anything fly and get Ron and some others to come back with you and get it. Otherwise you know how much hell they'll raise if it's just us two."

"You're not going out there at all. Malfoy is the team captain this year, and all he needs is you to saunter out there so he can prove to his team that he is the leader and all shall obey him."

"Fine. But go get people then. Ron or someone. I'll wait here; make sure they don't mess with anything."

He gave you a look that said if you go out there I will kill you. You just smiled and urged him off. He hopped on his broom and flew away in an instant. You turned your attention back to the field and stood guard. You found the basket sticking out slightly from the snow. It was barely visible, but you could use a summoning charm to get it and all would be well. You could even meet Harry on his way back out if you hurried. You pull out your wand.

"Accio basket."

You jumped for delight as the basket began flying towards you, but any happiness shattered when a hand reached out and grabbed it.

"What have we here?"

His voice was unmistakable. Malfoy had grabbed the basket, and you now had to get it back. Which meant going out there. Oh well, it wasn't like you hadn't dealt with Draco a billion times before.

"Can I please have my basket back Draco?" You ask in your most polite tone as you march towards the middle of the field.

The flying had ceased and they were all sort of hovering in the air, watching what their captain would do next. He flew down and landed a few feet in front of you.

"Funny how a basket turns up in the middle of the Quidditch field on a Saturday morning."

"Yes well, I was planning on having a picnic, but then it snowed and well now my plans are all ruined. So if you could just hand me my basket I'd be on my way."

You held out your hand expectantly.

"It doesn't have your name on it does it? How do I know it's even your basket?" He teases without even glancing down at it.

"Why else would I be out here? It certainly isn't to watch you practice flying about on your sticks."

"You can practice flying about on my stick any time you like."

You had expected him to say some sexual innuendo, but even that made you blush.

"If I wanted to practice flying about on a stick, Draco. It certainly wouldn't be yours."

"You just say that because we are in the presence of others." He grins, giving you a wink.

"No, I say it because it's the truth. Not my fault if you can't handle the truth Draco."

"Let's see how you handle this." He says cruelly, as he goes to smash the basket into the ground.

"Accio Basket!" you shout pulling it from his grasp. The basket flew into your hand knocking your wand out of your hand.

"You should have just let me destroy the basket. Histedius!"

You had no time to reach for your wand, and you saw the green rings coming straight towards you. With or without your wand you raised your hand and thought 'protego' just the same. You weren't the only one amazed when his hex bounced right off the shield charm you had somehow created without a wand. You looked down at your hand in amazement. And then it happened. A headache, worse than all the other combined attacked your forehead.

You knew you screamed, and you knew you fell, but then everything went dark.

"I told her not to go out there. I told her to wait for me."

"Well, Malfoy brought her up here didn't he? She's okay."

"Yes. She is. The basket however is not."

You started to stir; the voices were so close. Your eyes fluttered open and you saw Ron and Harry standing in front of your bed talking. And then you turned your head to the table next to the cot and saw the broken basket smashed to bits. You gulped down a sob.

"I'm so sorry." You say closing your eyes tightly willing the tears to stay put.

"Lanae? Lanae, it's all right. I already talked to the house elves; they weren't even upset. Are you okay though? Is the headache gone?"

You nod. You felt groggy slightly, but other than that no pain.

"This wasn't exactly how I had planned our date to end." Harry chuckles sitting down on the mattress.

"I'm sorry about that too. If I had just listened to you… I tried to summon it to me but then Malfoy snatched it and I just wanted to get it for you. You had already done so much for me."

"It's fine Lanae." He says, taking your hand in his.

"Listen mate, I'm going to let Hermione know she's okay. See you." Ron interjects. He gives a small smile and a slight nod to you before leaving you two alone.

"I can't believe Malfoy broke the basket after I passed out. What a jerk." You say trying to sit up.

"How that surprises you is beyond me. But at least he got you up here; you're just a tad more important than a basket."

"So you keep saying." You grin.

"Madame Pomfrey should be back really soon. She said she had to talk to Dumbledore before she gave you another dose of the headache medicine."

"Okay. Thank you." You say timidly, looking down at the ring on your hand. It sparkled in the sunlight shining through the windows.

"I wanted to wait a while, mainly for my ego in case you reject me again so soon, but would you like to be my girlfriend? Again?"

You look up at him slowly, searching his eager face for what you didn't know. He actually looked worried that you might say no. But here's the thing, you have never been a patient person, and waiting for Harry when you didn't have to was not something you were going to do anymore.

"Yes. I would love to."


End file.
